True Friends (song)
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=May 2016}}
{{Infobox song
| name = True Friends
| cover = TrueFriendsBMTH.jpg
| alt = Two arms, holding hands, on a light blue background.
| type = single
| artist = Bring Me the Horizon
| album = That's the Spirit
| released = {{Start date|2015|11|20|df=yes}}
| recorded =
| studio =
| venue =
| genre =
- Post-hardcore
- punk rock{{cite web|url=https://salutemag.com/2015/10/14/bring-me-the-horizon-make-major-waves-stateside/|title=Bring Me The Horizon Making Major Waves Stateside|first=Daniel|last=Offner|date=14 October 2015|publisher=Salutemag|access-date=15 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190202154132/https://salutemag.com/2015/10/14/bring-me-the-horizon-make-major-waves-stateside/|archive-date=2 February 2019}}
- emo{{cite web|url=https://musicfeeds.com.au/album/bring-me-the-horizon-thats-the-spirit/|title=Bring Me The Horizon – That's The Spirit|date=7 September 2015|publisher=|access-date=1 May 2024}}
| length = {{Duration|m=3|s=52}}
| label =
| writer =
- Oliver Sykes
- Jordan Fish
- Lee Malia
- Matt Kean
- {{nowrap|Matt Nicholls}}
| producer =
- Jordan Fish
- Oliver Sykes
| prev_title = Throne
| prev_year = 2015
| next_title = Follow You
| next_year = 2016
| misc = {{External music video
|{{YouTube|jeQMuTf3B0E|"True Friends"}}
}}
}}
"True Friends" is a song by British rock band Bring Me the Horizon. Produced by keyboardist Jordan Fish and vocalist Oliver Sykes, it was featured on the band's 2015 fifth studio album That's the Spirit. The song was also released as the fourth single from the album on 20 November 2015, reaching number 91 on the UK Singles Chart and topping the UK Rock & Metal Singles Chart.
Promotion and release
"True Friends" was first released on 23 August 2015 in the form of a lyric video on the band's official YouTube channel,{{cite news |url=http://www.kerrang.com/34923/bring-horizon-drop-new-track-true-friends/ |title=Bring Me The Horizon Drop New Track, True Friends |last=Carter |first=Emily |work=Kerrang! |publisher=Bauer Media |date=24 August 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016}} after being teased by the band for a number of days.{{cite news |url=http://www.kerrang.com/34883/bring-horizon-tease-new-song-true-friends/ |title=Bring Me The Horizon Tease New Song, True Friends |last=Carter |first=Emily |work=Kerrang! |publisher=Bauer Media |date=20 August 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016}} It was reportedly due to be premiered on Zane Lowe's Beats 1 radio show on Apple Music, but this was cancelled.{{cite news |url=http://www.gigwise.com/news/102345/bring-me-the-horizon-unveil-new-track-true-friends |title=Bring Me The Horizon unveil new track, 'True Friends' |last=Butler |first=Will |work=Gigwise |publisher=Giant Digital |date=24 August 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016}} On 20 November, the song was released as a single in the form of a limited edition 7" vinyl.{{cite web |url=http://www.banquetrecords.com/truefriends |title=Bring Me The Horizon - True Friends |publisher=Banquet Records |access-date=2 May 2016}}
Composition and lyrics
"True Friends" is a song about disloyalty.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.altpress.com/reviews/entry/bring_me_the_horizon_thats_the_spirit |title=Bring Me The Horizon are back with an epic reinvention |last=Bryant |first=Tom |magazine=Alternative Press |date=11 September 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016}} Speaking to TeamRock, vocalist Oliver Sykes has explained that the hook "True Friends stab you in the front" is based on a quote credited to Irish playwright Oscar Wilde.{{cite web |url=http://teamrock.com/feature/2015-11-06/what-is-bring-me-the-horizon-s-true-friends-actually-about |title=What is Bring Me The Horizon's True Friends actually about? |last=Morton |first=Luke |publisher=TeamRock |date=6 November 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016}} The song is "not about anyone in particular", although Sykes has revealed that "It's about some people more than it is others, but it's all about one event in particular that spurred it on. It's about people that I thought were my friends, my very good friends, doing something to me that I just didn't see coming in a way I never thought they would."
In a track-by-track commentary of That's the Spirit for Spotify, the frontman added that "True Friends" is about "coming to peace with [anger] ... [and] letting those people know that I can forget but never forgive".{{cite AV media |people=Sykes, Oliver (Narrator) |date=4 September 2015 |title=That's the Spirit (Track by Track Commentary) by Bring Me the Horizon |publisher=Spotify}} In his review of That's the Spirit, David Renshaw for the NME claimed that on "True Friends", Sykes "maintains a sense of paranoia and emotional vulnerability amid the cavernous sounds".{{cite web |url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/bring-me-the-horizon/16251 |title=Bring Me The Horizon - 'That's The Spirit' |last=Renshaw |first=David |work=NME |publisher=Time Inc. UK |date=11 September 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016 }} The song has been noted to "unleashed their [Bring Me the Horizon] inner emo kid".{{cite news |url=http://www.bluntmag.com.au/news/bring-me-the-horizon-release-lyric-video-for-true-friends/ |title=Bring Me The Horizon Release Lyric Video For "True Friends" |last=Swanson |first=Emily |work=Blunt Mag |publisher=nextmedia |date=24 August 2015 |access-date=3 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180125223244/http://www.bluntmag.com.au/news/bring-me-the-horizon-release-lyric-video-for-true-friends/ |archive-date=25 January 2018 |url-status=dead}}
Music video
The music video for "True Friends" was directed by Bring Me the Horizon frontman Oliver Sykes and released on 5 November 2015.{{cite news |url=http://loudwire.com/bring-me-the-horizon-true-friends-video/ |title=Bring Me the Horizon Offer Murder Mystery in 'True Friends' Video |last=Childers |first=Chad |work=Loudwire |publisher=Townsquare Media |date=5 November 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016}} Described as a "murder mystery revolving around a family" by TeamRock's Luke Morton, it features a story which "centers on a detective (Steve Oram) who is being haunted by his own past misdeeds". The video was praised by Loudwire's Chad Childers, who described it as "a powerful storytelling tool" and "one of the more chilling and intense videos of the year". Similarly, DIY magazine's Jamie Milton praised the video's "thriller epic plot" and dramatic nature.{{cite news |url=https://diymag.com/2015/11/05/bring-me-the-horizon-unveil-true-friends-video |title=Bring Me the Horizon unveil 'True Friends' video |last=Milton |first=Jamie |work=DIY |publisher=Sonic Media Group |date=5 November 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016}} In November, the band also released a video of their live performance of the song at Webster Hall in New York City earlier in the year.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.altpress.com/news/entry/bring_me_the_horizon_unleash_true_friends_live_music_video |title=Bring Me The Horizon unleash "True Friends" live music video |last=Sharp |first=Tyler |magazine=Alternative Press |date=19 November 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016}}{{cite news |url=http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/bring-me-the-horizon-true-friends-performance-clip-from-new-york-city/ |title=Bring Me The Horizon: 'True Friends' Performance Clip From New York City |work=Blabbermouth.net |date=19 November 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016}}
Critical reception
Writing for Gigwise, Will Butler claimed that "True Friends" was "in keeping with the more accessible sounds of 'Happy Song' and 'Throne'", describing it as "aggressive". Rock Sound writer Andy Biddulph dubbed it an "angsty, fist-pumping arena rock anthem" which he claimed was "ready-made for pyro blasts and sold-out arenas".{{cite web |url=http://www.rocksound.tv/reviews/read/bmths-thats-the-spirit-the-most-important-rock-album-of-the-decade |title=Bring Me The Horizon - That's The Spirit |last=Biddulph |first=Andy |work=Rock Sound |publisher=Freeway Press Inc. |date=17 September 2015 |access-date=2 May 2016}} Emmy Mack of Music Feeds claimed that "True Friends" was "bordering dangerously on emo", as well as describing it as the track which is closest to the post-hardcore genre on the album.{{cite magazine |url=http://musicfeeds.com.au/album/bring-me-the-horizon-thats-the-spirit/ |title=Bring Me The Horizon - That's The Spirit |last=Mack |first=Emmy |magazine=Music Feeds |access-date=2 May 2016}} On the other hand, AllMusic's James Christopher Monger criticised the main hook of the song, which he described as a "second-hand embarrassment-inducing" lyric.{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/thats-the-spirit-mw0002865734 |title=That's the Spirit - Bring Me the Horizon: Songs, Reviews, Credits |last=Monger |first=James Christopher |work=AllMusic |publisher=All Media Network |access-date=2 May 2016}}
Commercial performance
"True Friends" entered the UK Rock & Metal Singles Chart at number 2 on 28 August 2015,{{cite web |url=http://www.officialcharts.com/charts/rock-and-metal-singles-chart/20150828/111/ |title=28 August 2015 - 03 September 2015 |work=Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40 |publisher=Official Charts Company |access-date=2 May 2016}} before registering on the main UK Singles Chart at number 91 three weeks later.{{cite web |url=http://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/20150918/7501/ |title=18 September 2015 - 24 September 2015 |work=Official Singles Chart Top 100 |publisher=Official Charts Company |access-date=2 May 2016}} After moving up and down the top ten for a number of weeks, it later topped the UK Rock & Metal Singles Chart on 27 November, replacing Fall Out Boy's "Centuries".{{cite web |url=http://www.officialcharts.com/charts/rock-and-metal-singles-chart/20151127/111/ |title=27 November 2015 - 03 December 2015 |work=Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40 |publisher=Official Charts Company |access-date=2 May 2016}} In the United States, the track reached number 22 on the Billboard Hot Rock Songs chart.{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/297508/bring-me-horizon/chart?f=902 |title=Hot Rock Songs: Bring Me the Horizon - Chart History |magazine=Billboard |publisher=Prometheus Global Media |access-date=2 May 2016}} Elsewhere, it peaked at number 74 on the Belgian Ultratip chart in the Flanders region.{{cite web |url=http://www.ultratop.be/nl/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Bring+Me+The+Horizon|title=Discografie Bring Me the Horizon |work=ultratop.be |publisher=Hung Medien |access-date=2 May 2016 |language=Dutch}}
Personnel
Credits adapted from Tidal.{{cite web|url=https://tidal.com/track/50793899|title=Bring Me the Horizon – True Friends|website=Tidal|access-date=12 April 2021}}
{{col-start}}
{{col-2}}
Bring Me the Horizon
- Oliver Sykes – lead vocals, production, composition, programming
- Lee Malia – guitars, composition
- Matt Kean – bass, composition
- Matt Nicholls – drums, composition
- Jordan Fish – keyboards, synthesizers, programming, percussion, backing vocals, production, composition, engineering
Additional musicians
- Maddie Cutter – cello
- Will Harvey – violin
{{col-2}}
Additional personnel
- Al Groves – engineering
- Sam Winfield – engineering
- Nikos Goudinakis – assistant engineering
- Ted Jensen – mastering
- Dan Lancaster – mixing
{{col-end}}
Charts
| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|+ Chart performance for "True Friends" |
| scope="col"| Chart (2015)
! scope="col"| Peak |
|---|
| scope="row"|Belgian Singles (Ultratip Flanders)
|74 |
| {{single chart|UK|91|date=20150918|rowheader=true|access-date=18 September 2015}} |
| {{single chart|UKrock|2|date=20150828|rowheader=true|access-date=28 August 2015}} |
| {{single chart|Billboardrocksongs|22|artist=Bring Me the Horizon|rowheader=true|access-date=2 October 2015}} |
Certifications
{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for "True Friends"}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Australia|type=single|award=Platinum|relyear=2015|certyear=2023|access-date=6 March 2023}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Brazil|type=single|artist=Bring Me the Horizon|title=true Friends|award=Gold|relyear=2015|certyear=2023|access-date=7 March 2023}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Poland|artist=Bring Me the Horizon|title=True Friends|award=Gold|type=single|relyear=2015|certyear=2017|certmonth=3|access-date=December 27, 2022}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|artist=Bring Me the Horizon|title=True Friends|award=Silver|relyear=2015|certyear=2021|id=17204-3858-1|access-date=4 May 2021}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true|noshipments=true|streaming=true}}
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
External links
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeQMuTf3B0E "True Friends"] music video at YouTube
{{Bring Me the Horizon songs}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Bring Me the Horizon songs