You could have blown me down with a feather! What a pleasant surprise I am getting by listening to “The Pronoia Sessions” by the band ATREYU. They are usually known for their very weird and wonderful Extreme Metal adventures. These Americans hail from Yorba Linda in California and have been active since 1998. Throughout the years they have given us nine studio albums with music that will have your hair stand on end, your brains scrambled and confused, but most of all thrilled with the non-standard way that these Metalcore giants write, play and record their music. Boundaries are not made for them, or if they are they are not afraid to just ignore them and do what comes naturally. That’s why I feel that calling them a Metalcore band is like saying BLACK SABBATH is just a band that plays simple music. It is true, but there is so much more to it than that. They are able to mix Death, Black, Doom and even Thrash Metal into their Metalcore base, making every song and album just about unpredictable when you first start listening to them. So, the way they have approached this album can’t really be a surprise, but believe me, it is. Let me explain.

The idea for “The Pronoia Sessions” actually stems from the COVID era, when ATREYU rerecorded “Gone” and added the moniker ‘Reimagined’ to the title. It made such an impression that the band realised that this might be a very innovative way to assemble a sort of Greatest Hits album. Well, why not, and away they went. My reaction to “The Pronoia Sessions” is very simple: WOW!! This is very impressive. Not only do the eight ATREYU songs lend themselves to be altered with ease, the band is able to fill them in exactly the right manner. The music is all acoustic, but still just (or even more) impressive as the originals are. But because they are all different, you should imagine the word ‘Reimagined’ behind every one of them. On top of that they have also opted to add two covers to the setlist of the album, and both are simple outstanding. “Like A Stone” is originally by AUDIOSLAVE, but I can’t help that the band will be very impressed with the ATREYU version. The other cover is from TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS. “Mary Jane's Last Dance” has become a real piece of art. If you thought the DISTURBED version of “Sound Of Silence” gave you shivers, just listen to how ATREYU has interpreted “Mary Jane's Last Dance”. It is the perfect way to end an already impressive album.