Jesper

 

"This album is more like of a mixed genre kind of album";

hmm, idk what to think about this. On one side they say that Heavy is basically the core sound of the album, on the other side this is a mixed genre record? Both Heavy and Battle Symphony are rather poppy, so if this is really mixed genre, I hope the next song we hear (or when we finally hear the full album) will actually showcase that

Okay after some more listens the song grew completely on me. I still think both lyrically and msuic wise the song could be much better, but I enjoy the song.

Well I've learned something from heavy n battle synphony..it's that lp should bloody ditch new way of recording go back to working on the music first then writing lyrics to fit the song. They worked harder on lyrics this time and you can't really tell that. they worked on music last and you can tell as instrumentals are weak go back to working hard on the actual song structure

They didn't really worked harder on the lyrics, you don't hire the songwriter involved with Britney and Selena Gomez if you want to invest in your lyrical content. If that was the case they would have hired Linda Perry or even Dianne Warren, people who are commercial, but have also done work for more alternative projects or movie scores/soundtracks etc. It just seems Mike (and the band) wanted to record a poppy album and arranged everything to make that happen, including a feaux story that has to make us believe that they had hour long conversations that led to inspiration to write these lyrics. I mean I can take a lot, I can believe a lot, but I just can't believe the story after what we have heard so far

I just wonder why it took them a while with studio updates etc. when I am sure most of these songs were written in a matter of minutes. Some of the songwriters that contributed, write songs as their daily business. The production itself feels uninspired and basic. I really wonder if they just made up that whole big explaination about the album process, while this album is actually just a quickie to atleast have a record out. Even some songs on mmm...cookies - Sweet Hamster Like Jewels From America! sound like there went more thought into that, than there went into this album. This is the first LP record ever where I am so torn about basically everything.

The only thing I wish though is that they would just come clean and just say they were aiming for a commercial record. I mean you don't hire Justin Tranter, the hottest popsongwriter, just because you wanted to try a different approach. I am fine if they just wanted to target to radio/streaming and just see how it goes. But the fact Mike bashed the stuff on the radio and made the biggest 180 and even makes poppier stuff than the examples he gave at that time, just feels odd. This whole era doesn't add up so far, with what they say and what they want us to believe. That's the only thing I am dissapointed about.

I feel I will end up pretty much loving the album, but I also can understand why people are dissapointed with the material so far. It's not that is is different, but it is just really molded and created to get some traction commercially, something they didn't really cared that much for the last few eras and randomly now are overdoing in the most generic way possible.

But it is what it is, they probably keep up the stories about the making of the album and try to sell it that way. I will just try to enjoy what they have to offer and for all we know they pull an other 180 for the next record and release something completely different and unexpected.

I must say the material is catchy and keeps getting stuck in my head, both Heavy and Battle Symphony

idk how to feel currently. On one sde I like this, I listen to a lot of pop music and had a popular act record this and Heavy, I really wouldn't mind. But on the other side the direction and era is handled pretty traditional on their side so far.

I dearly hope the actual album has some more uptempo tracks, I know midtempo's are hot in the commercial landscape, but I rather have a good balance.

Thanks so much

Could be an instant grat, loads of acts do that on iTunes

Great video indeed. I am glad they did something without the 'usual' band shots and slo-mo shots they have done multiply times the last few eras.

Talking To Myself sounds good, I am very curious to hear how that one and One More Light sound in their studio form

The song works so much better in a live setting

I don't know. While it did seem like joking around, it still felt like there was an underlying message that they don't like their early days anymore and just want to put it behind them and forget it happened.

 

Maybe I am reading into it a bit much, and the upcoming weeks/months with the release and tour may change my thoughts, but I'm not optimistic for the time being.

You probably are reading too much into it. I doubt they really hate what they did during their early days. But I think they are just fed up with the crowd who keeps coming with the 'LP is dead, bring back HT/Meteora sound' every damn era. By now people should already have accepted that they just gonna record whatever they feel like. It has been so many years ago and people still are stuck in some delusional phase where they think ever band should be a one trick pony of their debut era.

A lot of the music of their early days were inspired by the life of them being 'kids' basically and struggles that they went through during that age. The style of their music reflected that. In the meantime they have grown as artists and as humans. Their music is reflected that aswell for the most part.

They are just joking and giving a middle finger up to that part of the fanbase (if we even should call them that) that are whining every era they should return to HT. Even some media outlets are stuck in that outdated argument, it is already tiring for me as fan, I can't even imagine how tiring it must be for them tbh.

Maybe my dreams of an unplugged show finally get real.

I can only hope

LP Carpool Karaoke would be AMAZING.

I really would love that

https://youtu.be/baqYw3Yq2ng?t=1m4s

I don't know what to think of this

Releasing more tracks? of a 10 song album? meh what's going to be left? 7 tracks?

 

The only thing that annoys me is that that if they wanted they could easily make a 15 tracks album but somehow they dont' want to, I used to think that it was because they HAD to play the full album live but now they just play like 5 songs and that's it.

Yeah I agree. I am still puzzled why they need the time until May to release a 10-track album and also want to release a few other cuts of the already short album. But I guess we have to deal And even though I am all quality over quantity, I must say that if only 10 tracks make the record from 150 demo's, damn.

pre-order:

 

jpc

amazon

Thanks thank God amazon delivers to my country

Hè is such a Nice Guy, met him in 2014. Too bad hè moved on

Yeah that won't happen again. Maybe a song here and there, like Wastelands etc. but not an entire album. Which is cool because I wouldn't want it to. I like that they continue to reinvent themselves.

Agreed

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EWQxweq6AZk

 

Any member of this site should listen to this entire interview word for word. Wtf happened????

I am literally laughing my *ss off when that part comes when he says 'I don't want rock to become pop', it sounds so dramatic, yet here we are

I must say I am suprised that the album is only coming in May. The album only has 10 tracks, and with how things are going these days with loads of artists doing alternative ways to release their albums, I am suprised how traditional they seem to go for this record. Since I expect an other single around the album release or atleast an instant grat, like things usually goes. I mean it isn't really something negative, but I wouldn't have minded the album coming early April, mid April at the most. But I guess they have some promotional roll out, that will make sense once we see it.

Ok, so apparently nobody mentioned this or I would have known earlier, Chester sings Heavy live normally? Sounds much better than the studio version and it sounds just like the piano versions of Pushing Me Away, My December, Breaking The Habit, etc. that the band has done in the past. Didn't know that. Only piano and vocals, it doesn't really sound poppy. I can dig the live version. I wouldn't mind seeing it at a show. I think a lot of what I didn't like about Heavy studio version was that I hated the vocals and the poppy sounding instrumental to go with it. Here, Chester sings it like he has every other slow LP song. Damn.

Agreed, I also dig the live version better. It feels a bit odd that the studio version of Heavy has been produced in the most top 40 way possible with 'edited' vocals etc. While the live version sounds more 'real' if I make sense, since the whole point of this album is said to be about their personal struggles, so why did they take a distance with the production and almost made it a bit theatrical in the way they produced Chester's vocals

I will keep judgement for the full song, and full album. But this doesn't sound exciting at all. I actually dig Heavy though.

Instrumental lol. Ouch.

 

I wish bands would still release b-sides on singles. The last band I've seen do it was Brand New last year.

Agreed.

At this point I even would be happy with that 'amazing' 'solo' version did, where they talked about in that Facebook stream, as B-side..

I think The Hunting Party failed to bring back rock to the mainstream attention, so that's why he decided to back to eletrcro-pop style.

He did Darker Than Blood, Welcome and Waiting For Tommorrow, so it's pretty predictable.

 

I wish that the album contains songs less generic even if I like Heavy

I mean I get the reasoning and I am not mad about the change. But it felt a bit odd to see especially Mike talk about how the landscape was so lackluster, only for them to return poppier than ever. But I def. hope the rest of the album is less generic.