For a band whose early days was marked by bombastic larger-than-life emo-meets-metal, L.A. rockers Black Veil Brides have matured and focused their sound, leading to some of their best work in 15 years on The Phantom Tomorrow. While its sixth effort is a concept album, the band didn’t use that as a license to wander off in experimental directions. The concept was kept to the narrative, lyrics and visuals that go with the record.

The record kicks off in dramatic fashion with an orchestral and instrumental title track. The dark and melodic tones are set right out of the gate. Black Veil Brides then launch right into “Scarlet Cross,” a no-nonsense rocker that fuses everything the band does well—guitar riffs, huge melodic choruses and driving energy. While the song has been out for a while, it’s worth a mention just how good it is, with a live energy that translates immediately. Things pick up for dynamic rocker “Born Again,” which jumps between half-time pre-choruses to fist-pumping choruses. What really works here is how band achieves heaviness without sacrificing melody and quality songwriting.

The evolution of Black Veil Brides feels somewhat akin to Avenged Sevenfold between Nightmare and Hail to the King, moving away from heavy thrash and toward riff-focused hard rock. The mid-tempo rocker “Blackbird” also benefits from impressive dynamics and tempo changes, including the beat drop on vocalist Andy Biersack’s lyric, “Just look into the sky and you’ll be become the black bird.”

The orchestral elements return, this time fused with electronica, on the instrumental “Spectres.” The song is more of an extended intro to the following “Torch.” The heavy track, which is nearly but not quite a power ballad, is one of the best moments on the record. It’s got strings, melody and  an energetic chorus. The lyrics here are downright infectious and it’s difficult to not let the chorus get stuck in your head.

“The Wicked One” starts out with more traditional heavy BVB riffs driven by machine-gun-speed kick-drumming. The track once again builds to a big melodic chorus, with Biersack’s commanding vocal cutting through the mix.  “When the truth becomes your demon/ How can can you just keep believing?” Biersack he asks in the chorus.

What begins as a dark and intricate opening quickly turns into one of the heavier bangers on “Shadows Rise.” The nearly five-minute track tiptoes closer into a more progressive sound than Black Veil Brides’ musical territory usually covers. There are time changes, dramatic strings and plenty of riffs. This song sneaks up at the end of the record as one of the more surprising and compelling moments.

“Fields of Bone” succeeds for many of the same reasons as “Scarlett Cross,” mixing riffs and rhythms. With the gang-vocal chorus, the song is well-suited to play live. At times, “Crimson Skies” sounds like ’80s rock with bombastic guitar solos and a heavy but melodic energy. The heaviness remains for the slow-burn hard rocker “Kill The Hero.”

The album closes out with the terrific “Fall Eternal,” the closest song to a ballad on the record, but with plenty of added bells and whistles to make it more than just the “slow song.” The track showcases the range of Black Veil Brides, and it may be worthy of further exploration.

Follow writer Mike DeWald at Twitter.com/mike_dewald.