Album by Album: the Visual and Sonic Evolution of Pierce the Veil's Sound

Explore how Album by Album: the Visual and Sonic Evolution of Pierce the Veil's Sound is drawing attention in this detailed write-up.

Following the massive tour cycles for Collide with the Sky, the band spent nearly four years agonizing over their fourth record. Released in 2016, Misadventures stands as the apex of their technical emo-pop capabilities. Tracks like "Circles" leaned unabashedly into radio-ready pop punk bounce, trading harsh screams for earworm melodies that told real-life narratives, including the band's experience near the Paris Bataclan terror attack.

Simultaneously, the album retained formidable post-hardcore teeth. "The Divine Zero" and "Texas Is Forever" showed off lightning-fast guitar work from Tony Perry and intricate, math-rock-adjacent rhythm interplay. It proved the band could construct hook-driven radio rock without dumbing down the intricate fretwork that gained them respect among technical musicians. Misadventures debuted at number 4 on the Billboard 200, proving that aggressive rock could still command mainstream commercial space without selling out its instrumental integrity.