Louder Now: Released on the 25th April this year by Warner Bros. Records, Louder Now is the latest album by the Amityville group Taking Back Sunday.
With producer Eric Valentine, the album takes a turn in a different direction from the past two efforts.
The album starts off with the mesmerizing opening riff on What’s It Feel Like To Be A Ghost? then the bass, drums and second guitar blast into make the opening of the song and the album by far the best of the three albums.
The verse consists of palm muted guitar and dual vocals by both Adam and Fred.
“Then you said a little more about your dreams like that was my call”
The Chorus “What’s it feel like to be a ghost? Louder now, Louder Now” is one of my favourite Taking Back Sunday chorus.
Liar (It Takes One To Know One) follows up What’s It Feel Like To Be A Ghost with its ska sounding verses into a solid rock chorus.
The first single off the album MakesDamnSure (yes it is one word) Has more of a sound from the album Where You Want To Be but still has that big rock sound they have come across in Louder Now.
The lyrics are the typical Taking Back Sunday style. Song is about how much someone loves someone because they think they aren’t as good as the other and how they never want them to leave.
Up Against (Blackout)
This song is different in a way that it starts off with the chorus rather then the normal intro, verse structure or most Taking Back Sunday songs.
The lyrics kinda make me think this song is about trying to fit in with the crowd.
“You never feel the jetlag unless you’re trying to fit in”
The chorus “This is what we’re up against” expresses how hard it is to fit in and gives me a feeling of giving up.
My Blue Heaven
Adams coals in this song during the verses are really something special. The feeling in the whisper like vocals goes on to talk about a conflict of some sort.
“Sometimes it just feels better to give in” I find is one of the most important lines in the while song because he wants to get the point across that it will be better if you five up cause it wont hurt as much.
The chorus makes me think how he is sick off all the hurt and wants it to end.
Beautiful guitar plucking is played during the bridge “We swing and sway, this tiny voice in my head starts to song, You’re safe child, you are safe” – The whispering vocals come back saying that it doesn’t matter its all ok now.
“It’s you I can’t deny”
Twenty-Twenty Surgery
An awesome guitar riff opens this song which foes into a bass, drum verse where the pace slows down. Adam goes on to say how the relationship he is in is not working and how he is getting ready to leave.
“It’s not the quantity or the quality that bothers me… It’s the means!” The line of the pre-chorus, I think is the main message in the song.
There’s nothing wrong with the relationship in how good it is or how much time together, it’s why they are together that’s wrong.
The chorus is a catchy repeated phrase “Twenty-Twenty Surgery”.
The final part of the song Adam goes on saying how sensitive she is and how his feelings are all gone “Me, I am a machine”.
Spin
One of my favourite on the album, great guitar and vocal harmonics throughout the whole song with a guitar solo also slotted in there just before the trade mark bridge.
“Don’t act like you’re the first one, I treat it like a disease, sure it’s rough around the edges, but I’m the only thing you see”.
“Don’t act like you don’t see me”.
When I hear this I think of a girl seeing all the bad points about him and the relationship and not seeing that there’s really more to it.
Blasting into the final chorus with Adam and Fred almost screaming the line, “You had your chance!” with crazy guitar to finish off the song;
Divine Intervention
Following spin is a change of pace, acoustic guitars, Piano, Tamborine and special
Effects on the drums make up Divine Intervention.
Adams vocals on this song are amazing. The feeling he uses is unexplainable.
The chorus “I need something real, something timeless, and act of god and nothing less will be accepted” Adam is saying how all he wants is someone who loves him so much and he thinks only the one true person will be able to help him.
The piano/keyboard solis throughout the song really add to the feel of the whole some.
“Mmm Mmm” At the end, He has nothing more to say.
Miami
“The whole truth and nothing but the truth” is the line that keeps getting used when he is told something and he is sick of getting lied to.
I think the whole Miami thing is the name he calls the girl that is making excuses not the actual place Miami.
The solo you hear is the first time you really hear something a bit different from the normal breakdown.
Bass drum and guitar rule the start of the breakdown as normal then back into a chorus to finish the song.
Error: Operator
“There’s been an accident, Calm down, There’s been an accident, Breathe in and out, Calm down” – Something has gone horribly wrong and he is trying to clam himself.
“We can’t go back” –It’s not going to go back to the way it was before.
The guitar and vocals are whinny on this song, but it doesn’t ruin the song. I think it makes the song lift to the next level.
“Would you do it again?” – Would you make the mistake again?
The bridge in Error: Operator is by far the stand out of the whole album.
The distorted “Murder, murderer, where have you been?” along with the massive build up, into my all time favourite breakdown is great. When I hear this I think he is yelling at himself, at the murder inside him, asking why, why hast he reviled himself before now so he doesn’t have to go through this.
I’ll Let You Live
Last song on Louder Now starts off with a riff played over and over then goes into a kinda soft quiet verse that sets a kinda intimate feel.
The chorus is a simple repeated riff and repeated vocals “There’s no stopping this, I’m gutting you out”.
The second verse follows the same thing as the first followed by another chorus.
A guitar solo comes in just after the chorus, not as complex as Miami but still good.
Adam and Fred trade vocals constantly throughout the song which adds a more emotional feel.
The outro of this song shows how much Taking Back Sunday have used new ideas with vocal effect, guitar solos, female backing vocals and that little bit more energy.
