Venom | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 14 August 2015 | |||
Recorded | 2014–2015 | |||
Studio | Metropolis Studios, London, England [1] [2] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 41:07 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer |
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Bullet for My Valentine chronology | ||||
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Singles from Venom | ||||
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Venom is the fifth studio album by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. The album was released on 14 August 2015 via RCA Records, their second and last album under the label. It is the first album by the band since the departure of bassist Jason "Jay" James, which was announced in February 2015 while the band was recording the album. [5] Jamie Mathias was announced as his replacement on 18 May 2015, along with the album's title, release date and release of the album's first single, "No Way Out". [6] This would also be the final album with founding drummer Michael "Moose" Thomas who parted ways with the band officially in 2017.
"No Way Out" and "Broken" were premiered live during the band's headlining performance at the Camden Rocks Festival in London on 30 May 2015. The second and third singles, "You Want a Battle? (Here's a War)" and "Army of Noise", were released on 29 June and 17 July 2015, respectively. Another two songs, "Playing God" and "Worthless" were released respectively on 10 and 13 August 2015. The whole album was made available for streaming on YouTube on 14 August 2015.
Jamie Mathias is credited as a band member but did not perform on this album; Tuck recorded all bass guitar parts instead. Mathias later said in an interview that he hopes to be involved in future band projects. [7] [8]
Aggregate scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 58/100 [9] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
DIY | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Exclaim! | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Guardian | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Louder Sound | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
NME | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Sputnikmusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Metal Hammer | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Kerrang! | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Evening Standard | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Venom received mixed reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 58/100 based on 8 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [9] British magazine Kerrang! awarded the album 4 stars, saying that "Venom has injected a whole new life into the British metal heroes." Alternative Press and AllMusic both gave the album 3.5 stars. [10] However, a negative review came from Bradley Zorgdrager of Exclaim! who gave the album a 3 out of 10. The critic wrote that "the lack of quality choruses leaves something to be desired. While their heaviest output won't win over any elitists, fans will also have trouble finding something here to sing along to." [12]
The album was included at number 37 on Rock Sound 's top 50 releases of 2015 list. [18]
All lyrics are written by Matt Tuck; all music is composed by Tuck, Michael Thomas and Michael Paget
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "V" | 1:26 |
2. | "No Way Out" | 3:53 |
3. | "Army of Noise" | 4:18 |
4. | "Worthless" | 3:18 |
5. | "You Want a Battle? (Here's a War)" | 4:14 |
6. | "Broken" | 3:39 |
7. | "Venom" | 3:54 |
8. | "The Harder the Heart (The Harder It Breaks)" | 4:00 |
9. | "Skin" | 3:59 |
10. | "Hell or High Water" | 4:36 |
11. | "Pariah" | 3:46 |
Total length: | 41:07 |
No. | Title | Length |
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12. | "Playing God" | 3:52 |
13. | "Run for Your Life" | 3:34 |
14. | "In Loving Memory" | 4:02 |
15. | "Raising Hell" | 4:35 |
16. | "Ace of Spades" (Motörhead cover) | 2:35 |
Total length: | 57:08 |
Weekly charts
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Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
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United Kingdom (BPI) [42] | Silver | 60,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Bullet for My Valentine, often abbreviated as BFMV, are a Welsh heavy metal band from Bridgend, formed in 1998. The band is currently composed of Matthew Tuck, Michael Paget, Jason Bowld (drums) and Jamie Mathias. Former members include Michael Thomas, Jason James and Nick Crandle; the latter were on bass. They were formed under the name Jeff Killed John and started their music career by covering songs by Metallica and Nirvana. Jeff Killed John recorded six songs which were not released; two of these tracks were reworked later in their career as Bullet for My Valentine. A change of style from that of Jeff Killed John led the band to change their name. In 2002, the band secured a five-album deal with Sony BMG. The band has stated that their music is influenced by classic metal acts such as Metallica, Iron Maiden and Slayer. The band is part of the Cardiff music scene.
The Poison is the debut studio album by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. The album was released on 3 October 2005 through Visible Noise Records in the UK, and on 14 February 2006 in the United States, through Trustkill Records. The album included 11 new songs and two previously heard songs, "Cries in Vain", which was previously heard from the band's self-titled UK EP and from their US EP, Hand of Blood, as well as from "4 Words " was previously included on the same US release. Different editions of the album contain the song "Hand of Blood", previously heard from these EPs, replacing "Spit You Out".
"All These Things I Hate (Revolve Around Me)" is a song produced by the Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. The song was released as the third single from the band's debut album The Poison, through Sony BMG on 3 February 2006 in Europe and released in United Kingdom through Visible Noise on 7 February 2006. The band originally recorded the song on their 2003 Jeff Killed John EP. It is their highest-charting single in the UK, peaking at number 29. It is arguably the softest song on The Poison due to its use of an acoustic guitar and minimal screaming.
Scream Aim Fire is the second studio album by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. The album was released on 28 January 2008 in the United Kingdom and the preceding day in the United States through Jive Records. Since its release, Scream Aim Fire has sold over 1,400,000 copies worldwide. It is the band's most commercially successful effort in Australia, earning a gold certification by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) in addition to a gold certification from both the band's native British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in the United Kingdom and the Bundesverband Musikindustrie (BVMI) in Germany.
"Scream Aim Fire" is a song by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. It was released as the lead single from their second album of the same name on the American iTunes store on 18 December 2007, and has also been released on the band's MySpace profile. Featured in the video games Guitar Hero World Tour and non-US versions of Guitar Hero Modern Hits, it is the band's highest charting single worldwide. It is also available as downloadable content in the video game Rock Band 3. A live version of the song recorded at BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge show was included as a bonus track on deluxe editions of the band's 4th studio album Temper Temper.
"Hearts Burst into Fire" is a song by the heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. The song was released as the second single from their second album, Scream Aim Fire. The song is featured in the video game NHL 09. Like most of their songs, the song is played in Drop C guitar tuning.
Fever is the third studio album by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. Containing eleven tracks, the album was released on 26 and 27 April 2010 in the UK and in the US, respectively. The album sold 71,000 copies in the US and 21,965 in the UK in its first week of release to debut at position No. 3 on The Billboard 200 and No. 1 on Billboard's Rock and Alternative charts, making it the band's most successfully-charting record to date. Since its release, Fever has sold over 600,000 copies worldwide. It also went gold in the UK in late 2013.
"Your Betrayal" is a song by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine and was released as the first and lead US single from their third album, Fever. The song was set for release on 8 March 2010 to the radio; and, unexpectedly, was released early as a Digital 45 on iTunes along with the track "Begging for Mercy" on 2 March 2010. Before that, "Begging for Mercy" was offered for free download on 14 February 2010 from the band's official website for a limited time. "Your Betrayal" was nominated for the Kerrang! Award for Best Single.
"The Last Fight" is a song by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine, released as the second and lead UK single from their third album, Fever, on 19 April 2010 to the radio and a limited 7" edition of 1000 copies on 17 April 2010 with "Begging for Mercy" as a B-side. An acoustic version of the song was released as a "Pre-order Only" bonus track on the iTunes version of the album. Before all that, "Begging for Mercy" was offered for free download on 14 February 2010 from the band's official website for a limited time.
"Bittersweet Memories" is a power ballad by the Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. It is the third single from the band's third studio album, Fever. The music video for "Bittersweet Memories" was released on 25 November 2010.
"Fever" is the fourth and final single from the Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine's third album, Fever. It is the only single from the album that does not have a music video. It peaked at #23 on iLike Library's Most Added chart.
Temper Temper is the fourth studio album by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. The album was released on 8 February 2013 in Australia, and 11 February 2013 worldwide under RCA Records, their first under the label. The album was once again produced by Don Gilmore, who worked on the group's last album, 2010's Fever, and was mixed by noted engineer Chris Lord-Alge. This would be the last album recorded with their full original lineup with longtime bassist Jason James before he departed from the band in February 2015.
"Temper Temper" is a song by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine from their album Temper Temper. Its music video revolves around a group of people in a room with anger and fury issues. It is the only music video by the band without the members in it.
"Riot" is a song by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. The single "Riot" is included on their fourth studio album Temper Temper. It charted at number 22 on Mainstream Rock Songs. It was featured in the video game NHL 14.
"Breaking Point" is a single by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. It is the fourth and final single from their fourth studio album Temper Temper. A music video for the song was released on 7 June 2013, and an official single released 12 August 2013. "Breaking Point" peaked at number 36 on Mainstream Rock Songs
"Raising Hell" is a song by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. It was released on 18 November 2013 as a promotional single to showcase what the band's future material would sound like. The song is featured as a deluxe edition bonus track on the band's fifth album Venom. This is the final song that featured Jason James on bass after the band and him parted ways in February 2015.
"You Want a Battle? " is a song by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. It was released on 29 June 2015, as the second single from the album Venom.
Gravity is the sixth studio album by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. The album was released on 29 June 2018 via Spinefarm Records, their first album under the label. It is the first album with former Pitchshifter drummer Jason Bowld, who joined in 2016 to replace founding drummer Michael "Moose" Thomas. It is also the first album to feature bassist Jamie Mathias as a contributing member. Gravity represents a significant change in sound compared to the band's previous releases, moving toward the nu metal sound similar to their early years as "Jeff Killed John".
Bullet for My Valentine is the seventh studio album by Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. Originally scheduled for release on 22 October 2021, it was released on 5 November 2021 through Spinefarm Records and was produced by Carl Bown.
"4 Words (To Choke Upon)" is a song from Welsh heavy metal band Bullet for My Valentine. It was released on March 28, 2005, through Visible Noise Records, as the first single from their debut album The Poison.