Bring Me the Horizon recently released a new EP titled Post Human: Survival Horror. The nine-song collection features the UK act collaborating with such artists as BABYMETAL, Evanescence vocalist Amy Lee, and more.
We caught up with BMTH frontman Oli Sykes over Zoom, and the singer filled us in on recording new EP during the pandemic, working with BABYMETAL and Amy Lee, and returning to the band’s heavy roots.
As for the recording process of the EP, Sykes explains, “Apart from [the song] ‘Ludens’, the whole record was written, recorded, mixed, and mastered completely in isolation and remotely, with each person doing their own thing in their own house. It’s something very much at the start we didn’t think was gonna be a possibility.”
The EP includes a collaboration with BABYMETAL called “Kingslayer”, which features Sykes sharing vocals with the Japanese pop-metal act’s Su-metal. As Sykes tells us, he and his band are big fans of BABYMETAL. “We’ve kind of had a special relationship with BABYMETAL for years now. … I always just wanted to make sure they felt a little more welcome when they were at these very male-energy dominated festivals…. Every time we see each other it’s always a really nice moment.” Oli further mentions that BMTH eventually went on to open for BABYMETAL in Japan.
Regarding Amy Lee’s participation, that one is a little more complicated. As Sykes explains, Evanescence were seeking legal action against Bring Me the Horizon, because the song “Nihilist Blues” from BMTH’s 2019 album amo “took a little too much inspiration” from an Evanescence tune. The legal issues were eventually worked out, and it turned out that Lee was a fan of Bring Me the Horizon. That led to the collaboration on the track “One Day the Only Butterflies Left Will Be in Your Chest as You March Towards Your Death”.
Sykes goes into much more detail on the collaborations with BABYMETAL and Amy Lee in our video interview above. He also talks about his personal experience during the pandemic, having previously openly discussed his own mental health struggles.
Watch our full interview with Oli Sykes above, and pick up Bring Me the Horizon’s new EP, Post Human: Survival Horror here. You can also stream the full EP below via Apple Music or Spotify.
Trouble viewing the interview in the player above? Watch on YouTube.
