Album | Grade: B-
Modern Baseball is a great example of how broad of a genre “post-hardcore” is. They’re a band that sound nothing like many of their contemporaries, though they’re sometimes referred to as “post-hardcore.”
Their new album “You’re Gonna Miss It All” is an example of a sound that is somewhat unique within this type of music. Throughout the record, the band serves as an example of one aspect that most bands within post-hardcore share: complaining about their lives.
“I hate worrying about the future because all my current problems are based around the past,” sings frontman Brendan Lukens. This is the first line on the entire record, and it sets the tone for what turns out to be an experience that is both self-obsessed, and self-loathing.
Throughout the album one gets the feeling that Lukens, who has been attending Drexel University, has drawn a lot of material from the time he’s spent in college. There are a lot of situations described that I’ve been in myself. From dealing with the sound of a couple gettin’ it on in the next room to being so into someone that you’ll make up any excuse to be with them, many of us have been there.
However, dealing with such subject matter creates a problem; Lukens’ lyrics can sometimes go from poetic to whiney mid-sentence. There were times when I went from impressed to annoyed in mere seconds. Lyrically, there is a lot to like in this album and really, the lyrics are probably exactly what Lukens was going for. They’re just a bit disjointed for my taste.
Musically, I’d call the album “pretty.” The guitars are often soft, and it wouldn’t be unreasonable to mistake the band for straight indie rock. Aesthetically, it’s difficult to call Modern Baseball anything with the word “hardcore” in it. The guitars aren’t heavy, and I can’t picture any sort of mosh pit forming to this music. But in songs like “Apartment,” the band displays a fast-paced style that reminds you that they’re firmly rooted in punk. Overall, the album has a sound that helps to translate the lyrics in a way that isn’t too abusive to the ears, and every song meshes well.
Overall, it’s easy to see what Modern Baseball is going for, and there are a lot of great things happening here. In fact, I could see this being an album that I end up really liking after repeated listens. On its face, it’s an album that people our age can immediately relate to.
