Modern Error

Musical style

Critics categorised Modern Error's music as post-hardcore,^[18][19][6] melodic hardcore,^{[20][21][22][9]} post-rock,^[2][23] metalcore,^[24][25][26] emo,^[27][28][29] electronic music,^[13][30] post-punk^[4] and mathcore.^[27] They often incorporated elements of industrial music,^[31] hardcore punk,^[32] synthwave, industrial metal^[33] and metalcore.^[34] They built upon the pop screamo sound of Funeral for a Friend and Finch, experimenting with industrial and electronic elements.^[35] In an interview with Distorted Sound the band identified their early music as post-hardcore, but considered themselves to have progressed past that genre on their subsequent material stating, "I think we just wanted more. We needed more".^[33]

Modern Error's songs were often in minor keys, with verses including screaming while choruses featured singing.^[36] They made use of emotional vocals,^[37] power chords, layered backing tracks,^[18] cinematic elements,^[38] sampling, electronic drums, glitches, synthesisers,^[2] ambient soundscapes and breakdowns.^[33] Vocals range between screaming, whispers and falsetto^[2] and records often switch back and forth between heavy songs and soft ballads.^[39]

RockFlesh writer Matt Fraser described them as "all the songwriting pop sensibilities of Thirty Seconds to Mars, and meld that with the hardcore elements of SeeYouSpaceCowboy".^[40] Prelude writer Dom Vigil call them "a superlative blend of stadium-bothering rock and post-punk abrasiveness".^[41] Noizze writer Dan Hillier called them "a bold and proud unison of post-rock abrasiveness and composed alt-rock that takes clear and evident inspiration from the cinematic work of composers Kubrick and Aronofsky".^[42] RockSound called Victim Of A Modern Age (2022) "Part anthemic masterpiece, part industrial slow-builder".^[43]

They cited influences including AFI, the Used, Finch, Green Day, Drab Majesty, Depeche Mode, Boy Harsher,^[4] the Elijah, Creeper, My Chemical Romance, 30 Seconds to Mars, Citizen, Rand Aldo, Slow Meadow,^[44] In Flames, U2, Muse, Angels & Airwaves, Glassjaw, Nine Inch Nails, Survive, Rival Consoles,^[45] Health,^[46] Sum 41, Good Charlotte, Superheaven, Bearings and Linkin Park.^[47]

Imagery and lyrics

Modern Error were a concept band, with an overarching narrative continuing through their work, particularly lyrics and music videos.^[22] They devised stories first, then music was written to fit that narrative.^[33] Lost in the Noise (2019) was a triptych, viewing purpose, belief and insecurity through the lens of existentialism.^[36] A study of the human condition and inward emotions.^[33] Frontview Magazine compared its lyrics to Friedrich Nietzsche.^[48] On Victim Of A Modern Age (2022), they split the narrative into two chapters, which represent lightness and darkness, the latter half being more experimental and electronic.^[22] In an interview with Distorted Sound, Zak summarised it as "a protagonist who essentially falls victim to the ways of a modern world, and then finds himself in a new world reflecting on his place in existence. Essentially the whole arc of the concept is becoming what you’re meant to be".^[33] The A side followed the protagonist being tempted by technology and the negative impact on him, in a way that mirrors Icarus from Greek mythology. The B side saw the protagonist seeking the meaning of reality, mirroring the resurrection of Jesus and trinity.^[41]

Often, the band members performed onstage in all black, with Zak wearing elbow-length black gloves.^[30] On a separate occasion, the members wore sky blue shirts, Sun 13 said this is "clearly important and fits the heavy magnetic sound they have".^[49] At Download Festival 2022, they wore leather harnesses, BitterSweet press writer Emily Swingle said their clothing "visually embod[ies] the same clashing, exhilarating nature of their sound".^[50]

They identified the band's aesthetic as "futuristic minimalism",^[33] and cited visual influences from David Lynch, Stanley Kubrick^[46] and Darren Aronofsky.^[42]

Legacy

In 2019, NME and Hysteria magazine noted Modern Error as a forefront act in a new wave of heavy British bands, alongside Lotus Eater, Loathe, Holding Absence and God Complex.^[51][52] They were a product of the increased experimentation and genre-fluidity in the UK's heavy music scene of the late 2010s.^[38] The Soundboard credited them as "bringing a sense of vitality" to the scene.^[53] Prelude credited them as "pushed sonic boundaries" on Victim Of A Modern Age (2022).^[41] In the 2020s, they fronted a revival of early 2000s post-hardcore alongside Static Dress.^[54]