On September 4th, 2025, the metal world got its own equivalent to "Bang Bang," as Poppy, Amy Lee, and Courtney LaPlante released "End of You" through Sumerian Records. In some respects, this feels like a passing of the torch to two modern powerhouses, and two who have previously collaborated at that. Now that the dust in the old theater has settled, we here at The Nu Metal Agenda have some thoughts on the team-up track, but in case you've been living under a rock, check out the song and music video below:
Lucia Z. Liner: Full disclosure, I was losing my absolute shit during the premiere of the music video. The hype had a hold on me, as the music of all three of these women each have special spots in my heart. I am thrilled to see that this happened, especially given Courtney and Poppy's previous one-off of "Soft Spine" at Louder Than Life last year.
That said... it feels like an Evanescence with Spiritbox window-dressing, and also Poppy's there. Especially given the placement of this song and video on Sumerian, Poppy's label, this is an odd feature of the whole ordeal. I will grant that the balance of the three vocalists is great, as Amy provides her classically-trained voice, Poppy provides a bridge between the clean and harsh vocals, before they give way to Courtney's screams before a clean-sung bridge.
I am hoping this isn't the only time we get this triangulation of these three, because as a one-off, this is good, but not great. The "holy shit it's happening you guys" of it all does some heavy lifting here, and I'm as much of a fan of these three as the next girl, but it does seem like the hype was cannibalized a bit here.
Alex Cross: “End of You” starts off strong with Amy Lee’s part, her voice as strong and beautiful as ever. I’m not really a fan of the delivery of the lyric “the end of you is the start of life with me”. It just sounds clunky and doesn’t really flow with the rhythm and vibe of the rest of the song. Poppy joins next, and her vocals are great as well. Having her sandwiched between Amy and Courtney was a good idea, she provides a nice transition between the clean vocals and screams. Of course, Courtney isn’t slacking either. The quality of the vocals was never going to be questioned, these are three of the best female voices in the scene. I just feel like this song would’ve benefitted from being a collaboration between two people rather than three. It feels more like an Evanescence song with guest features from Poppy and Courtney. I would’ve liked to have seen this as a new Evanescence song, with maybe Poppy as the guest feature. Then we could get a Poppy and Courtney/Spiritbox collab that would be heavier and give both women more time to showcase their talents in singing and screaming together.
All in all, I think it’s a decent song but I wouldn’t go out of my way to listen to it again.
Sam Owens: “End Of You” is alright, I think. Upon first listen I quite possibly actually rolled my eyes when the riffs kicked in, because it’s certainly a track Jordan Fish produced. That’s not to say Fish is a bad producer, either. His work with Bring Me The Horizon produced some of my favorite tunes ever. I just think that he has a habit of overproducing. Throw Zakk Cervini in the mix, and it’s overproduction central. There are times that Mike Stringer’s guitar riffs seem at odds with, and sometimes drowned out by, the tried and true radio chugs. The result is instrumentation that feels like something I’ve heard before. And that sucks, because it’s at odds with the three powerhouse vocalists going absolutely batshit on the track. Amy Lee sounds as good as she did in 2003, and that shift from Poppy’s vocals to Courtney LaPlante’s in the breakdown tickles my brain. This pairup is a match made in heaven and I hope to see another collaboration from these three in the future, hopefully on a track that doesn't feel done to death.
Erin Brady: Finally, we have a “Bang Bang” for the metal girlies. “End of You” is a solid effort combining three of the best women this scene has to offer and it’s already entered my replay rotation. While the song tells the story of one rising above a failed relationship, it also feels firmly like a passing of the torch from Amy Lee to both Courtney LaPlante and Poppy. She essentially walked through the turbulent rock scene of the 2000s so they could run today.
It’s through this lens that helps “End of You” truly soar. This extends to the actual arrangement as well, where each woman showcases their talents without feeling rushed or crammed together (the scream-duetting of LaPlante and Poppy is undoubtedly the song’s highlight). Even if the production sounds a bit too generically Sumerian, it doesn’t take away from just how massive the song feels. All of this to say, good for them!
Alvaro Xerom: Personally, I’d go as far as to say that this is the song of the century, people weren’t lying when they called the union “The Holy Trinity: the mother, the daughter and the holy Spiritbox”. The song is the perfect combination of the strengths of the three vocalists and perfectly showcases Amy Lee’s powerful vocals, Poppy’s versatility and Courtney’s brutality, when you add that up with Mike Stringer’s guitar and Jordan Fish’s flawless production, you have the perfect recipe for an amazing song. As an extra tip for the listener, the song loops flawlessly.
