BLAMMOS - Sometimes I Wish You Were Dead. Coverwork
With an album title as cheeky and dark as Sometimes I Wish You Were Dead, you’d probably expect an album full of darkly comical lyrics paired with ironically upbeat music laden with razor sharp pop-hooks. Unsurprisingly, BLAMMOS long awaited third album, their first in about 15 years, delivers on exactly that brand of sugar-coated dark humor. We had the pleasure of debuting one of the band’s singles off the album a few weeks ago, their punked-up cover of The Beatles’ classic “You Won’t See Me.” Appropriately, the rest of the album is packed full of the same gorgeous pop melodies that made “You Won’t See Me” such a success for The Beatles, creating a power-pop juggernaut that’s a masterpiece of black comedy.
Opening track “I’m So Confused” sets the tone for the album to come with an Elvis Costello-esque pop track loaded with ’50s-style “Oooh oohs” and a healthy helping of casual swearing. Then the keyboard-centric “Excited, Delighted, Let Down” is a classic-style pop track with some of the bitterest breakup lyrics you’ll ever hear.
While most of the songs see the band’s mastermind Arthur Adams on lead vocals, “I Don’t Understand the Rules,” a soulful pop tune that the album’s title is taken from, sees keyboardist Joelle Jaffe taking over the lead vocals, adding a dose of femme energy to break up the masc vocals. Jaffe’s vocal performance is pure soul and unleashes a torrent of resentful emotion into the witty lyrics. “Lars, Norse God of Metal” adds a touch of absurd surrealism to the lyrical themes of the album in a song that’s reminiscent of one of Ben Folds’ more melancholy tunes.
“Lonely” sees Adams and Jaffe sharing vocal duties, a contrast that works exceptionally well, especially against the heavily compelling melody. “Pretty Girl Ltd.” is very classic in its pop melodies, pulling off the spirited energy of Ritchie Valens’ “La Bamba” or The Champs’ “Tequila.” Finally, the closer “Civilized” with its chunky chords and stomping rhythm, belies the sinister energy of the song that really comes through in the furiously angry vocal performance, allowing the album to close out doing what it did best for the whole record.
Adams has apparently been working on this album for around 10 years, and the time and dedication he’s put into the project shows through. This is finely honed pop music with a bombastic wit that’s oddly relatable in all of its angry glory. In taking 10 years to produce 10 songs, BLAMMOS have managed to carefully craft an album that revels in darkness while musically full of happiness and light. Everything about this album is a delightful ride that you won’t want to get off of at the end.
You can listen to the album here. Follow BLAMMOS on Facebook and Instagram for future updates.
