Yungblud (2022)

One Liner: Dance rock slash Machine Gun Kelly thing with lyrics built to shock.

Wikipedia Genre: Alternative Rock, hip hop, pop punk
Home: Doncaster, England

Poster Position: 8
Weekend Two Only.  Sunday.

Thoughts: A friend had suggested this guy to me back in 2018 when I was in dire need of fresh tunes.  At the time, Yungblud only had a five song EP, and I loved it.  He's loose, raw, excitable, very clearly British, and a little ridiculous.  Not a great voice, purposefully raspy and raw, but the songs can be very fun.  Dominic Harrison is his real name.  Since that EP, he released his full-length debut, 2018's 21st Century Liability, which repeats three of the EPs songs but leaves off one of my favorites, "King Charles."

Groovy, political, rock and roll.  But, like I said, this one didn't make the cut for the album, so maybe I'm alone in digging it.  I dunno.  The track with the most streams was the top one from the EP as well, and is a little more reckless.  "I Love You, Will You Marry Me" has just over 33.9 million streams.

Much more of a pop rock feel, with that ska guitar bounce and a driving beat.  And a highly entertaining video.

So, after those two songs up above, you can understand why I'm enjoying the guy - fun, energetic, danceable, good times.  Then his album comes out and its sprinkled with songs that leave the fun behind for a message, and I'm disappointed. "Kill Somebody" repeatedly gripes about how someone made him feel bad, so now he just wants to kill somebody like you.  Which honestly isn't that funny or clever.  And the tune is super basic.  "Machine Gun (F**k the NRA)" is, not shockingly, a screed about depressed/psychotic people who get made famous by using their machine gun (or otherwise hurting themselves).  Again, not really presented in a way that provides useful commentary on the subject, just a mediocre beat and apparent excitement about showing off and machine guns.  "California" has a neat chorus capper - "swear that when I get old you'll blow my brains out."  "Die for the Hype" has a chorus asking to die for the hype, "crucified like Jesus Christ."  I'll give you the most streamed of the new tracks, another happy tune.  "Psychotic Kids," which has 26.1 million streams.

Oh, neat!  Crazy kids don't know what they want!  You dropped the hair dryer in your bath!  Your parents are stupid!  And the video gets just as disturbing.  Maybe he decided the Marilyn Manson shock-rock route was the best way to get fans?  Does that still work?  In this interview, he says that he just wants to sing about real subjects that other people tiptoe around, so I guess I get that (sort of?).  "And I want this album to be an outlet for people who feel like they can’t be themselves, or feel like they can’t say what they think. Because if you feel like your voice isn’t important, you’re wrong. It is. Everyone’s voice is important."  MMMkay, not sure how giving voice to assholes who want to kill someone is a good idea?  Maybe I'm missing some clever hidden meaning here, but that seems like a super shitty thing to do?

He also released a 2018 EP of four of his songs in an unplugged setting, which are tender and kind of arresting.  I talked about "Polygraph Eyes" back in my original review, very good tune, and sounds even cooler when stripped.

And after all of this, he came to ACL in 2018 and I went to the show.  Wow, welcome to f-bomb town, kids!  This show was actually damn fun, he was manic and wild and very hyped up, but if he used less that 50 "fucks" I'd be shocked.  And if he stuck his tongue out less than 300 times, I'd be shocked.  Although, I will also admit that my 10 year old daughter looked up at me at one point and asked if he was lip syncing.  And so I had to explain to her about backing tracks and what those are used for.  To which she replied that it seemed like cheating, and I have to agree.  If you're going to use a backing track, then you can't forget to sing along the whole time.  This was like Eminem a few years ago, where Yungblud would pull the mic down to strut or stick out his tongue, and yet we would still hear him "singing" the words.

Since then, he released more music, including the 2020 album weird! and some other singles and EPs.  He has definitely shifted into a pop punk phase with Machine Gun Kelly as his inspiration now.  His most popular track on Spotify is actually a MGK song.  But his second-most streamed tune is from that 2020 album, called "parents."  241.7 million streams.

Huh.  Speaking of Eminem, that is like a shitty Eminem facsimile about killing your dad and humping your best friend.  That is a terrible song.  I get he sentiment, that parents are wrong and it is okay to be homosexual, the actual product there is garbage.  Too bad, really, that he didn't stick with the pure fun of the early EP.  This new album isn't it.  "fleabag" makes me think of that Wheetus song "Teenage Dirtbag."  

I don't guess I would go see this one even if I was there on Sunday of weekend two.