POP-PUNK TURNED SUPER POP: AGAINST THE CURRENT 'PAST LIVES' ALBUM REVIEW

Against The Current are a pop-rock band who have been on the rise for some time. In a few short years, they've gone from doing covers on Youtube to being the support act on pop-punk heavyweights Fall Out Boy's most recent world tour. 'Past Lives' is Against The Current's sophomore album, which seems to be a far cry stylistically from debut album 'In My Bones'.
It is no longer a surprise when a pop-punk band turns to more pop/electro sound, with bands such as Paramore, Fall Out Boy and All Time Low who were icons of the pop-punk era now turning to more experimental releases, it means that artists being influenced by them also do the same. It seems pop no longer has a banner of shame surrounding it like it did in the 2000s, meaning bands such as the previous mentioned and Against The Current feel less constrained by the need to be as edgy/rock as possible, and with more freedom (in my experience) often comes great music.

The overall first feeling I experienced when listening to Past Lives was simply 'This is a great pop album'. Regarding most tracks, if I didn't already follow Against The Current and know their genre history, one could easily assume that pop has been their thing the whole time. Often when bands transition from rock to pop it gets a bit...iffy. In many cases, there is a few tracks or an entire album where they're trying to keep their punkier fanbase while also experimenting with more pop/electro sounds and it becomes a bit of a mess. However, ATC have seamlessly transitioned into the pop genre by seemingly diving in head first. Being at a very early stage of their career, they can afford to take risks such as this and go from genre to genre until they find their sound, and it's definitely paid off in this case.

There are clearly some far more experimental tracks such as 'The Fuss' and 'Scream' that really go full force into 80s electro-pop which almost sounds as if the instrumentals could feature in a video game. However, even in songs, there are still very clever little hints to suggest that maybe they're not the fully pop-dedicated band some might expect. For example; vocalist Chrissy Constanza's vocals in 'The Fuss', particularly in the chorus, give off a certain almost harshness that reflects vocals used in pop-punk tracks. Another example is 'Come Alive' which includes a drum and bass that sound like they could easily feature on a far heavier track but are instead layered with electronic sounds and soft vocals to create a pop song with a bit of an edge. And then, there's the track 'Voices' which begins sounding like it's going to be pop-punky with harsh vocals and guitar riffs then develop into wholehearted pop by the chorus.
 It is clear that Aginst The Current had no intention of purposefully going to fully-fledged pop, as can be seen by all of the features and quirks in their songs previously mentioned. To me, it seems, that they began creating this album with a completely open mind and ended up creating something that was both fun and heartbreaking, that took the basics of heavier music and layered it to make pop perfection. To be able to listen to an album and have an idea of how the album came about with no influence from the artist is a really special thing and it's great to be able to almost hear the creation process within a track. I don't know how Against The Current have managed to achieve this effect, but it is a little bit exceptional.

'P.A.T.T' is a standout track on the message but there's a chance I could be a little bias as it is a female empowerment anthem about not needing validation from others. The message of this song really is the beauty of it. It has the instrumentals of a catchy song and (as per usual) Constanza's vocals are great but the message of this track is what makes it really great. These types of song, although they seem a little cliche now due to the sheer number of empowerment anthems, are never a bad thing. The reason they, in my eyes, can never be a bad thing is that somewhere there might be a young girl who is discovering music for herself for the first time and is actually influenced by this song. It is especially important to have a young woman who originates from and associates with the rock genre (if not necessarily from this album) to create songs such as this because, although it may be changing now, rock is a famously predominately male-run field. Would the song have more impact if it was fully invested in the rock genre? Maybe. Is it a good song with a good message to feature on an album? Absolutely.

I'm by no means claiming that 'Past Lives' is a perfect album, but it is a good and solid collection of songs and ATC most likely have a very long career ahead of them to really home in on who they are and the sound that they can be successful with. There are definitely some improvements to be made, for example, I am fully aware that Costanza has incredible vocals but it doesn't feel like they were really used as well as the could have been; they weren't showcased.
However, in general Against The Current produced a really great second album which leaves me intrigued to see where they're going to go from here.


BUY/ STREAM 'PAST LIVES HERE:

SPOTIFY
APPLE MUSIC
ATC STORE

Written by Ruby Crowhurst.