A Celebration of Endings is Scottish rock band Biffy Clyro’s ninth studio album. The album was released on August 14, 2020, and so far has been a hit for fans. In the past, a lot of their albums were very well received, with Only Revolutions being considered one of their best albums by many. Their previous album Ellipsis which came out in 2016 was decently received, but not as well as their previous albums. This album, however, absolutely makes up for it.

A Celebration of Endings really brings out Clyro’s unique sound, featuring many odd time signatures and a very free form feel. A lot of the tracks on this album sound very orchestral with instruments such as strings to give it a more dramatic sound. There is also a lot of heavy distortion on both the bass and guitar giving a very tense feeling, at certain parts.

The first track, “North of No South” starts the album and sets the tone for the album going forward, with distorted vocals, creating an unsettling sound, in contrast to the guitar in the same section, while distorted, sounds very light. This song begins with everything to come on this album. “The Champ,” the second song, has strings and piano in the start, leading up to the end where it gets faster and louder.

“Weird Leisure” and “Tiny Indoor Fireworks” help to tone the album down, keeping a similar tempo, but changing the sound of everything from the guitars to the vocals. Both tracks have hints of older Clyro, with them both sounding like songs from Only Revolutions which has very distinct vocals that you would only hear on an album by Biffy Clyro. 

“Space” tones the album down, even more, continuing the trend from the last two songs. This song features lots of strings and quieter drums, compared to the normally extremely loud drums, and while the song gets more intense near the end, it still maintains it’s lighter sound.

“End Of” completely makes a one-eighty and has only the bassline playing as the guitar and drums play very loud, with unpredictable hits on each, This creates tension for the next hit. This trend continues throughout the song and does not slow down what so ever throughout the song. 

“Instant History” is perhaps the most out of place song on the album, and sounds similar to a dubstep song in some parts, such as the chorus. The drums especially sound like a dubstep song and do not sound anything like what they have on the rest of the album. The rest, however, including the vocals, sounds similar to what they have had before.

“The Pink Limit” is next and also has a unique sound, but in a better way. The guitar has to be the best part of this song. It has so many different sounds, such as mimicking the vocals, or having a fluttering sound, and even playing a riff between vocal segments. Everything else blends well with the guitar, and the drums which are playing the same pattern during the verse, this also helps to blend with the vocals.

“Opaque” is the one acoustic song on the album, as they’re usually is at least one on every album by Biffy Clyro. This one sounds just like the ones that have been previously recorded on past albums and brings nothing to the table, but it makes up for it by using strings and bass guitar, along with the acoustic guitar. Near the end, there are also drums. Not much, but they still are there. And that brings us to the final track.

Fittingly, the ending song, “Cop Syrup,” would probably be the best and most unique song. Being the longest song, at 6 minutes and 17 seconds, this song has a lot to unpack. It is the fastest and most insane song here, while also being the slowest and lightest. There are so many contrasting sounds, like how at the beginning there is a punk style, leading into a more traditional rock song, which leads into a more acoustic section. This acoustic section begins around 30% into the song and goes until the last section. It gets louder and more complex as time goes on, such as what sounds like key changes, more drums playing, strings getting higher and higher, and eventually ends with the punk sound coming back once again for one more line, closing out the song and whole album.

A Celebration of Endings brings Biffy Clyro back to their traditional sound. This album is one of the best they have ever produced, and if you like rock I very highly recommend listening to it. Is has something for everyone, whether you like heavy guitar riffs, complex drums, or acoustic guitar, there is a lot here for everyone to like.