Rust

i like to give my inner hater a little treat sometimes. i just think this album is very corny - super self-serious without any of the lyrical grace or delivery (seriously - sam heft's vocal style has not improved even remotely) to back it up. the lyrics are just substanceless, surface-level observations, go figure—this was very much an entire album about politics and social issues sung by a lyricist who almost certainly has no brave or nuanced takes on very complex issues they've chosen to "discuss" for the sake of surface-level aesthetics. you'd think tlt would have been a little more vocal on social media and such about certain pertinent, ongoing conflicts if these ideas really mattered to them... anyhow (generic theming aside), the mixes and production are very wonky and inconsistent across the board on this too—everyone's been pointing that out. given that, and the very short length, i get the impression that this album was rushed out the door for one reason or another? i don't think this is a great album ruined by unfortunate circumstances or anything (the band's vision clearly just isn't for me), but like... what's going on here? so weird.

it's an improvement over their debut in my opinion, anyhow; i did find that it was a fun listen, even if i was laughing *at* it than with it (out loud and everything - heft's delivery is way too much, the production can be very eccentric in ways that can be a little embarrasing... eugh). if someone tought sam heft to pack in the theatrics and stop rapping, i wouldn't *hate* this. i don't think i'd really like it either, but it would be far less obnoxious.