"Chelsea Smile" has been identified as evidence of Bring Me the Horizon's musical development on Suicide Season; Exclaim! writer Dave Synyard praised it, alongside "It Was Written in Blood", for featuring "catchier rhythms, lessened guttural vocals and more structured songwriting, as opposed to reverting to a technical onslaught of guitar riffs". When asked about this change in approach in relation to the two songs, vocalist Oliver Sykes explained that "I think it's good when a band can be really heavy and still have catchy hooks and riffs without it being cheesy and typical", adding that the band were "trying to make the heaviest and catchiest music possible". For the Cut Up! portion of the 2009 special edition reissue of Suicide Season, remixes of "Chelsea Smile" were produced by Jamie Kossoff and Jon Courtney under their KC Blitz moniker, as well as Gym Class Heroes frontman Travie McCoy. According to set list aggregation website setlist.fm, "Chelsea Smile" is the song performed most frequently at Bring Me the Horizon concerts. It has been included in the set lists of several high-profile shows, including the band's performances at Wembley Arena in 2014, Reading and Leeds Festivals in 2015 and Alexandra Palace as part of the That's the Spirit Tour in 2015.
Music video
The music video for "Chelsea Smile" was directed by Adam Powell, who also worked on the video for earlier Suicide Season track "The Comedown". It was filmed and released in early January 2009, alongside a series of four behind the scenes videos which were uploaded periodically to the band's Myspace page. The video features a brief appearance from the members of Canadian hardcore punk band Cancer Bats, who are shown playing poker during the opening scene. Kerrang! included it at number 9 on their list of the band's best music videos in April 2015, praising its high-energy party vibe. The video was later included on the Cut Up! special edition reissue of Suicide Season.
Critical reception
's Tom Forget praised "Chelsea Smile" as a highlight of Suicide Season, describing it as "Intricately constructed and refreshingly unpredictable". Dan Slessor of the Alternative Press named it the best Bring Me the Horizon song, praising its "armor-plated juddering, deranged energy, titanic breakdown and insidiously catchy hooks". Loudwire's Sarai C. ranked it at number 2 on her feature of the band's best songs, highlighting its importance to the development of the group's sound and the metalcore genre in general, moving away from its deathcore roots. Metal Hammer writer Luke Morton ranked it the sixth best song by the band, describing it as "one of the nastiest songs to ever be called catchy" and praising its "brutalising breakdowns" and "primal screams".
