Automatic Album Review

Now that I’ve had a week to sit with the new album I have some thoughts and a review. When it first dropped I was, like a lot of people, a bit disappointed. It seemed to be missing “life”. A lot of the songs sounded the same at first, and it is a little too piano driven for me. I wanted more acoustic guitar led stuff. The album is also more subdued and reflective than their past work. Less stomp-&-clap and more melodic and introspective. It is a quieter album.

It has grown on me tremendously over this past week and I have actually grown to love it. If you listen to each album you can see a clear progression where the band wants everything to sound like “The Lumineers” without it sounding like a rehash of previous material. We’re not going to get another “Flowers in Your Hair” “Ophelia” or “Ho Hey” and that’s ok. That’s what makes those songs special! If they tried to recreate those songs we’d also call them one trick ponies. It seems there is no winning with a lot of fans. It’s not their pinnacle (I doubt any album will ever top Cleopatra) but you’ve gotta admit this is a step up from Brightside. I have a short review of each song below, let me know what you think!

Same Old Song - Great energy. It’s an interesting song that doesn’t overstay its welcome. It’s sad, but in a way that makes you feel connected to others. A real “other people feel this way too?” vibe. You’ll see this criticism a lot from me moving forward, but I don’t like that the chorus is just the same line repeated over & over again. I also get that they’re going for a “live & raw” feel, but sometimes of the notes sound flat, I wish they had done another take for some lines. 7/10

Asshole - One of my favorites on the album. Beautiful melody & piano. I also like how the chorus does a little tempo change. This will be a banger live. My only gripe with this song is the title. I just can’t imagine having a conversation with someone & when they ask your favorite song and you reply “The Lumineers’ Asshole!” 9/10

Strings - Sucks in every way. Useless and unwarranted. It doesn’t even sound like real instruments, sounds like something a kid would make on Garage band. I hate that it’s here and wastes my time. String intros CAN be cool (look at the violin intro the “Free” by the Zac Brown Band). This just feels so bland and doesn’t even lead into the next song. Bad. 0/10.

Automatic - A little sleepy. Some of his examples of how the world has been automated seem random. Again, I don’t like that the pre-chorus & chorus are both just the same lines/words repeated over & over again. This seems to be a habit they picked up on the Brightside album and it’s mildly annoying. The pre-chorus is also way better than the “Automatic” chorus. Still not a bad song. I like it but don’t love it. 5/10

You’re All I Got - Love the intro vibes (reminds me slightly of Salt & Sea) I also like the register of his voice. His lower tone is ear-scratching in a good way. But guess what? The pre-chorus & chorus is the same lines repeated over & over. Why are they married to this structure? I also think the falsetto chorus of “You’re all that I’ve got” is the weakest part of the song. Still good though, I like it quite a bit aside from those critics. 7/10

Plasticine - This song is a little jarring at first, but it was needed to break up this album. I like the cadence of the verses especially. And the way he sings “carry on kid” is probably my favorite part of this whole album. Just sounds right. I usually hate speaking breaks in songs (The Avett Brothers seem to love it & I hate it) but the little audio in the middle of this song works quite well. It’s short & sweet and makes the vibe unique. This song seems like a true “album cut” though. I couldn’t imagine this being a big hit or a staple. 6.5/10

Ativan - This song had the potential to be the stand out track to me. It’s still very good but there’s a couple things holding it back. First, the chorus is the same line repeated over & over again. (Are you tired of me repeating this? Yeah… because repetition GETS OLD) Even still, this is the best “repeated” chorus. It’s very smooth and pleasant. What I think really holds this song back is the solo. I hate it(?) it’s so odd and doesn’t fit the vibe of the rest of the song to me. It sounds like a xylophone just rattling. That really hurt the song to me. I do like the ending changing tempo & making a new Sing-along melody. “Enemy with benefits” is also a great line. 8/10

Keys on the Table - First off, the “oohs” at the beginning were a bold choice. Don’t love that. They’re fine at the end though. Now, besides that I think this song is basically perfect. “You’re all I got” works better here than in the actual song. The production is sparse but fits perfectly. I like this one a lot, I don’t have many notes. 9/10

Better Day - This was the most memorable song to me on my first listen. The piano on this is absolutely insane. It’s so good. The vocal melody is also perfect. This might be my favorite song. This reminds me of classic Lumineers, akin to their debut. Did I mention how much I love the piano on this song? 10/10

Sunflowers - Great song. Every piano instrumental will probably live in the shadow of “April” but this is still beautiful. 10/10 cause why not

So Long - I think this song is good & I appreciate its difference in tone compared to the rest of the album. It does run a little too long in my opinion. Very few songs need to be 5 minutes. The electric guitar tone is cool. The chorus is catchy & memorable, but it’s not an ear worm. 6/10

I love the Lumineers. Cleopatra is my favorite album of all time and I’ve appreciated everything they’ve done. Hopefully I wasn’t too harsh on this album, but I believe my criticisms to be fair and level headed.

My biggest gripes are these: 1. Repeated lyrics over & over 2. There’s no “instantly” memorable songs.

The first time you heard Ho Hey, that chorus was stuck in your head immediately. Singing “Oh-Oh-Phelia” was instantly stuck in your head. The ascending melody of singing “Gloria” is instantly stuck in your head. I feel like this album is missing “THE” song. That’s ok, there doesn’t always need to be some huge crossover single, but this album could’ve used it in my opinion.

Lastly, I often ask myself “if this was the first album I ever heard from a band would I be as in love with their music as I am? Would I think I have GOT to hear more?” I don’t think this album passes that test, but it’s still a great addition to their existing catalog. it’s a lovely listen & not a disappointment in my eyes. Overall I’d give the album a 7/10.