glass animals

the fall off of glass animals needs to be studied.

so first they made zaba in 2014 which is incredible. genuinely underrated as fuck go listen to it if you havent already. i am yet to find another album that makes me feel the way that one does.

then in 2016 they made how to be a human being, which is genuinely a masterpiece. maybe one of the best concept albums ever made. definitely within my personal top 10. 

and then 4 years later in 2020 they made dreamland and… i remember being so excited for this album. i was so curious what interesting new direction they would go. their last album was super ambitious, building on their established sound in a really cool way. i couldnt wait to hear their new stuff. so i listened to it. and it was bad.

well, not bad, but just… mediocre. it was boring and watered down. generic in a sort of corporate way; something you would hear in a white claw commercial. sort of “safe sleazy.” i dont think that term was a thing yet, but i really think thats the perfect way to describe glass animals new music. its like the polished off all the grit and experimentation leaving boring radio-safe pop. no more singing about male prostitutes and drug addiction or abstract descriptions of jungle animals and fetuses in utero. the most youll get is a mildly risqué love song lyrics with some vague allusions to weed (or mushrooms if you want to get a little crazy)

its just disappointing i guess. i still absolutely love their old music. but like what caused this change? did they just sell out? do they genuinely think their new stuff is good? sigh…. why cant people just make the kind music i think is good? then there would be no more bad music. really makes you think