Ho lee shit.
I’ve been burning with anticipation for this album since they released “It’s Just Us Now” a couple months ago. You heard it right?
This is an amazing song. At just the moment when it should go nuts, they draw back and create more room for Alexis to sing. Wow! And the video manages to reinforce it somehow. I’ve been listening to this song every other day since it came out, and generally pestering my friends about it.
And then today, they released the rest of the album. Guess what? This thing is fucking incredible. Every song on here is just as powerful and surprising, in a totally unique way. Music you could head bang to, or have a moment of transcendence, or shed a tear to.
Congratulations, you fucking did it! Your first album, you were just a mess, but we loved it. Your second album… I think you must have been studying music theory, and suddenly there was structure. A bit too much structure. Third album: good songs! But this, this is the album where it finally comes together, where the unbridled chaos of the first album meets the intelligence and emotion hiding inside you, and it feels like you finally said something. Something brave and messy, something felt and understood and meant. It’s thrash, it’s pop, it’s dance, it’s total chaos. It’s sweet, it shreds, it’s scared, it’s raining fire. Is that a goddamn saxophone?
And it’s bold! It’s triumphant and glorious! It’s really incredible… an amazing end to a pretty trying week. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be on repeat for me for the next couple years, replacing The Griswold’s Be Impressive.