YUNGBLUD - YUNGBLUD
On September 2, YUNGBLUD released his self-titled, third studio album. The cover art — with YUNGBLUD front and center, peering into the distance, with stark red highlights and an unconventionally worn, funky blazer — suggests that this album will provide a glance at who he is beyond his musical career.
The first track is the first promotional single that was released, ’The Funeral’. This track is a dream, perhaps a recurring one, of what he might be up to right after he dies. He was dancing at his own funeral and expecting people to show up, but “nobody came what a shame, shame, shame!”
Next, 'Tissues’ showcases YUNGBLUD’s distinctive high-energy vocal style. The verses reek with desperation and a plead for sympathy and support. But just like the previous track, this one is also danceable even though he sings, “All I can say is it makes me sad!”
Because of this sadness that hasn't been resolved, YUNGBLUD sings in ‘Memories', “I wish I could just let go of all the memories I know”. WILLOW joins the song in the second verse, singing, “I can't fucking cry in front of her”, thus likely making YUNGBLUD feel less alone in his feelings even though his funeral was empty. On ‘Cruel Kids’, an electronic beat comes in the first verse with a prominent guitar in the first half of the first chorus and live drums in the second half. Instead of dancing alone, he tells someone, “Slow dance with me in traffic”. This song is a standout for me due to the different instrumental elements' fusion at times that feel just right.
Starting as a capella, ‘Mad’ encapsulates what is perhaps a quarter-life crisis, with YUNGBLUD wondering if he is meant to be someone else due to people’s expectations ‘I Cry 2’ is a closure of this crisis, with purposefully auto-tuned lines such as “When I’m not myself, I tell myself ‘I gotta be’” as a way to stand up against those expectations. ’Sweet Heroine’ is a mournful ballad with an electric piano. YUNGBLUD croons, “Saw my father cry one time/And I must admit it really messed me up”. It becomes hopeful towards the end through the added synths. Then he switches it up with ’Sex Not Violence’, a more lively song with lyrics “My codependency don’t mind, kaleidoscopic kind of body” and a whispery chorus.
‘Don’t Go’ continues this romantic edge to YUNGBLUD with the lines “I can’t hear all about how I’m losing my glow/‘Cause I can’t fuckin’ handle you fallin’ in love with me”. Here, he is being a tad sarcastic — he wants to fall in love someday, but he is not used to it. ‘Don’t Feel Like Feeling’ is another song with a hint of sarcasm because he sings, “I wanna lie in my bed/So that I run away from what the internet says” when the internet can certainly be accessed when lying in one’s bed through one’s phone.
'Die For A Night’ is a short, slow, guitar-driven ballad, returning to the theme of “The Funeral” but with more sentimentality and softness. The closing track, ’The Boy In The Black Dress’, starts with high-velocity synths and tells a story of a boy ("Jed”) who doesn’t conform to masculine norms and is bullied for it, but he finds a girl (“Nikki”) who provides him assurance and comfort. Ending with a twist, but not a surprising one, YUNGBLUD reveals that Jed is really himself, despite his said hatred for him.
The album sticks to a few select themes that are recycled heavily in today’s young-adult musicians, but YUNGBLUD’s artistry makes the songs alluring and fun. As a result of this project, YUNGBLUD solidifies his wide range of skills in various approaches to his singing and his genre while staying relevant to Gen-Z themes.
Sophia Campana
★★★★☆