This album has shoegaze, grunge, and some almost Brit Pop or Trip Hop vibes throughout the too quick runtime of its ten tracks. And even though it’s Alicia Bognanno’s 4th Bully album, it sounds like a more experimental, wing-spreading 2nd album after the monster thesis statement that Sugaregg was — the album where Bully started to get big.
Although, not as big as they should be, with how 90s nostalgia seems to be taking over the attention of a certain sector of Gen Z. There are some Sad Jams here too, and maybe the real world being such a bummer, young people today don’t have the heart to twist the knife in further with their music like we did back in the day? Happiness can be a choice, but most of us thought that meant Selling Out…
But, as the saying goes: “If it’s mentionable, it’s manageable.” Better to let out the venom, than keep it inside where it infects every cell of your being.
This is a multifaceted and mature album. But don’t mistake that for stodginess or a lack of teeth, especially with the ending one-two punch that is “Ms. America” and “All This Noise.” A modern, alternative rock sound that stands on its own, but that looks like someone you went to high school with back in the day.
-bcp