The Score - Atlas

The Score - Atlas (2017)

Genre: Pop Rock, Hard Rock, Indie Pop

Atlas is the debut studio album by the indie pop-rock duo The Score, released in 2017. I am reviewing this album by request. As a reminder, I do not intend for this to be a really in-depth and complex review. I'm just sharing my quick personal thoughts on the album. As for any album review I will do, I try to be objective without letting any personal bias get too much in the way of the final grade.

I may not have a full appreciation for modern pop, but I do enjoy a good dosage of indie rock from time to time. That said, upon my first listen of this album, I didn't have such a strong impression. A second listen did allow me to pick out a couple of "gems" off this record, while still leaving the rest as below average, simple feel good music. Legend teased me near the beginning with some barebones sonic imitation of Led Zeppelin's heavy guitar driven riffs, and then it just went away. A real shame, as it had the potential to keep its momentum going and become my favorite track. Tightrope surprised me with Eddie's admirable performance, as unlike most of the other tracks, he sounds pretty "clean" and, admittedly a bit sultry. Strange on the other hand, is the other decent cut on the album which I praise for it's seemingly simple, but catchy syncopated vocal performance. Speaking of vocals though, I have to talk about the lyrics.

Look, I'm all for bold statements and intellectuality in music, but there's something about this record that screams, "SELF-CONCEITED!" The fact of the matter is that a lot of the lyrics clearly relate to grand ideals of fame, uniqueness and standing out. Most of it is the sort of happy-go-lucky songwriting you have come to expect from most of the tween friendly pop world of today. Normally, that's not a big deal, but I'd be lying if I said they don't feel blown out of proportion thanks to the saturated overproduction my ears experienced from listening to this album. I'm not blinding myself to the fact that at heart, this is a pop record, but there is a limit to how much overdubbing you can do before the music comes off as a bit pretentious, especially with the subject matter at hand.

  

From what I've gathered, the band's very own Edan Dover handled production work, and while I admire his efforts, some tracks could have fared better without some of the unnecessary overdubs and blown up production. One of the cleaner sounding songs on this record, Believe, has the unfortunate distinction of being one of my least favorite on the record. As Eddie sings on Revolution, "There's a revolution coming!" If this album is any indication of things to come, then they have some work to do before I'm willing to listen to their cause. Overall, it's a painfully standard feel good record in which some generic by-the-numbers compositions and questionable production choices hamper it from being an enjoyable debut. Fans of simple, modern pop rock may very well get a kick out of this, though, but I wouldn't really know.  

  

D

  

Favorite Tracks: Tightrope, Strange, Who Am I

  

Least Favorite Track: Only One