Biffy Clyro - Wolves of Winter

Don’t blame Biffy Clyro for trying something radically different. For months they’ve been warming the world up to “the best thing we’ve ever done”, a record that sounds like Death Grips and Tears For Fears - at the same bloody time. They claim BOOTS was a big influence on new LP ‘Ellipsis’. What’s going on? Have Biffy evolved into a new beast? They give hints of it on ‘Wolves of Winter’. Simon Neil tries out a bit of vocoder, because why not? Crashing cymbals share space with manic drum machine parts. There’s a stop-start cheerleader-like method to Neil’s opening chants. But let’s not pretend this isn’t Biffy Clyro. Yes, they’re trying out new tools and seeing what sticks, but they don’t let their original mantra slip for one second. In fact, the giant choruses are even bigger, the sky-reaching ambition even more front and centre. If anything this is a new, more assured Biffy Clyro, embracing their festival headliner status and spitting venom in every direction.