Some things I got wrong in 2023
Contrary to popular belief, I am not, in fact, perfect
NEVER ENDING GAME COURTESY OF REELLIFE CREATIVE HOUSE
Music writers love to prognosticate, make grand declarations, and spew hot takes about records after hearing them a couple times. For myself, the very immediate nature of what I do means I have to occasionally eat my words. I try to be thorough and level-headed, because what I write will live in perpetuity on the internet as “my opinion”. Still, changes of heart are natural, and sometimes I fuck up. Here’s a few things I was wrong about this year.
Drain’s Living Proof
What I said originally: Santa Cruz’s Drain take a step forward in visibility by releasing their sophomore album on Epitaph Records, but the music takes a step back.
What I think now: Maybe I’m just not the target audience for this band anymore. There are a couple stinkers on Living Proof, and I think those missteps make this seem worse than it is. I like it less than California Cursed, so my assessment isn’t entirely wrong, but realistically, a lot of these songs are on par with Drain’s past material. It’s entirely possible I just like this brand of hardcore less than I did a few years ago.
Hip hop is in its hair metal phase.
What I said: Hip hop, in the spectrum of broad culture, is currently missing so much of what made it undeniably appealing. Its biggest impact isn’t in the club or in someone’s headphones, it’s on a fuckin spreadsheet being circulated in the Spotify offices.
What I think now: I should have said “hip hop is missing what made it appealing TO ME”. I made this piece a broad statement about the health of hip hop when I could have made it more personal. Truthfully, I don’t know whether or not hip hop is speaking to the masses. It wasn’t speaking to me, so I stopped listening. Hopefully 2024 is the year I pick it back up.
Fraud’s March of Progress
What I said: It would be easy to put this Boston band in a bucket with their one syllable name, two-tone art and affinity for the pogo beat. You would be doing them a disservice, though.
What I think now: this isn’t the most egregiously derivative form of black shirt pogo music, but that’s certainly what it is. I think what makes this stand out is excellent drumming, otherwise it would be pretty forgettable. In fact I kinda did forget about it. I didn’t play March of Progress almost at all after reviewing it in July. This is a decent EP, but not as trend-smashing as I made it out to be.
Never Ending Game’s Outcry
What I said: The purist in me wants to hate this, or at least wring my hands about what it signals. A good song is a good song though. This album has plenty.
How I feel now: Aside from the radio metal anthem “Tank on E”, which is more memorable for its meme status than its musicianship, I don’t remember any of these songs. This is an album I enjoyed reviewing and then never revisited after I published my thoughts on it. Maybe I should go back, but I never felt compelled to hit play on it this year, which isn’t a good sign. NEG’s sophomore effort got eclipsed by better heavy records and more tasteful attempts at going big.