so. uh. decades. "review" below the cut.
...well, i don't hate it.
this is an entirely personal thing but due to OCD Rules i actually can't even listen to about a third of the album. of the nine songs i can listen to, i really dislike two of them. the other seven i either LOVE, enjoy, or am okay with pavlov-ing myself into liking.
rip: i can't stand this song. maybe i'm just a bitter single bitch but oh my god this actually annoys me if i hear it. they have better "love" songs.
playing god: this is my favorite original track on the album and i'm sure it's obvious. i love corey, i love them being angry, i love One Specific Verse even if the "i hate social media" thing is very heavy-handed.
fight like hell: oh this is fun, okay this chorus is catchy, i like- NO OH MY GOD DON'T DO THAT WHITE BOY
and to be very fucking clear - i enjoy rap. i do not enjoy chris's rapping. he sort of sounds like fred durst with the goofy enunciations while also sort of sounding like a theatre kid because why are YOUUU SPECIFICALLY rapping. as my dear mutual said "there are four other band members who were like let's rap badly with mama" because you mean to tell me all FIVE of you heard that and were like hell yeah hit that shit?
all that i've ever known: i actually really really enjoy this one. i love chris's singing but i really need him to stop randomly talking!! the lyrics of this one really resonate with me (even if some of them are goofy) because i got put on a carousel of medications as a teenager and none of them have ever helped me with my mental illnesses as much as music/engaging with my interests. again though i need him to STOP RANDOMLY TALKING. 🫵 sing or scream, boy. oh and i actually really REALLY dig the techno breakdown. and the key change.
you will NOT catch me talking down on the techno/electronic elements on this album but what i will say - I MISS BALZ. you just know he'd be fucking this up. the synths and shit on this album are fun and it's MIW, it's gonna have some of that because they had balz from basically the start, but hearing it come to the front like this without him makes me a little sad.
count back from zero: again i love chris's singing and this entire thing is so fun and dancey and catchy. this feels like a direct connection to STEOTW which sort of helps. specifically the pre-chorus after the second verse is so so fun. also lol he hit that one single brendon urie ass note. not as much of a fan of the breakdown callout though. but the breakdown itself is good.
blood pact: fuck this song. i very rarely listen to things from my favorite bands and go "oh this is dogshit" but like dude this is DOGSHIT. at least LOUD is bad but it kind of circles all the way back around to bad enough to be camp and have fun with it (the music video and that one picture of ryan on the skateboards helps a lot) but this one? this is just BAD.
afraid of the dark: this one is the best overall track on the album i think. like as a whole musically lyrically all that. if the rest of the album actually sounded like this i'd be much happier with it.
sunglasses at night: I FORGIVE CHRIS FOR ALL OF HIS CRIMES BECAUSE I FUCKING LOVE THIS THING SO MUCH. i've always been a fan of the original since i was a kid (#canadianmoment) and when they announced this i got So Fucking Stoked. and i'm very VERY happy to report that i love it and i think they did such an amazing job. chris sweetie i can look past everything else you did for that.
hollywood: the chorus is very dancey and catchy and i appreciate it. this does sound sort of like...forgive me for this but. it's octane-core. this is a rock song. and i like rock songs. but i thought this was the industrial goth metal band.
this album feels like it's either "leave a legacy" or "i fucking hate social media" and like yeah. i get it. but it doesn't resonate with me nearly as much as previous albums. also i get that STEOTW didn't really have any fun pervert songs on it either but where are the fun pervert songs??? ("you fuck like tarantino" does NOT count by the way.) but coming off of STEOTW where like okay yes the narrative was shaky at best but man at least it felt more connected in musical vibe and general themes.
TLDR: i don't hate it. but i'd be lying if i said i wasn't a little disappointed. but sunglasses at night makes up for everything.
discoholicmusic
snowghoul
baratheonpilled
origamiaround
