CaNiTi

Unfortunately, with Boys Cry Too, The Haunted Youth delivers a project that feels chaotic, messy, and lacking any truly defined identity. The album jumps from Dream Pop tracks that feel like a direct continuation of their debut to far louder and more aggressive songs that never really fit together, as if they belonged to completely different records.

On top of that, the emotional honesty in the lyrics ends up turning into a melodramatic caricature of “I hate my life, I want to destroy ... read more

Dawn of the Freak is a remarkably interesting debut, one that makes it clear that The Haunted Youth fully understands how to craft atmospheres capable of completely absorbing the listener. Its synthesizers, ethereal guitars, and layered instrumentation ultimately become the true heart of the album, elevating many of its songs and giving them a melancholic, immersive identity that rarely loses its grip.

However, where the project begins to stumble is in its writing. While there are genuinely ... read more

With Angel in Plainclothes, Angelo De Augustine sounds completely at ease within his own style, delivering, as usual, intimate, tender lyrics filled with a very particular melancholic beauty. However, that same comfort occasionally works against the album: at times it feels a little too confident in the formula it already masters, causing the final quarter to lose some momentum despite the project’s short runtime.

Even so, Angel in Plainclothes remains a remarkable album. It is a work ... read more

While Toil and Trouble falls somewhat behind the two previous projects by Angelo De Augustine and doesn’t mark a clear step forward in the evolution of his sound, it remains a notable work, rich in personality, character, and emotion. Its greatest strength lies in Augustine’s intimate, confessional lyricism, which reaffirms the consistency and sensitivity that define his music.
Toil and Trouble is a polished project that draws from what he explored alongside Sufjan Stevens on A ... read more