If imitation truly is the sincerest form of flattery, then Green Day's rock opera years remain the benchmark for arena-filling pop-punk bands. All Time Low, like Fall Out Boy before them, have embraced a belt-it-to-the-cheap-seats sense of drama, but on 'Future Hearts' their spark and purpose is mislaid.
Perhaps it's down to the size of the halls that these songs are expected to fill, but much of the band's sixth album becomes bogged down in familiar tropes and a heavy sense of expectation.
By resorting to character sketches and the sort of vague outcast narratives that allowed 'American Idiot' to pull the pins in millions of hearts, All Time Low lose their voice, which has been equal parts determined and reflective for a decade.
From the thunderous, echo-heavy drums of the opener, Satellite, to the none more Billie Joe delivery of Kicking & Screaming's opening line, there is a palpable sense of a band trying to take a step that's been predetermined for them.
Even the appearance of Mark Hoppus - a long-time champion and collaborator - only results in Tidal Waves, a sub-Stay Together For The Kids dirge. If Green Day and Blink designed the template, All Time Low have followed it too closely.
And, it's not like they got to this point by doing something wildly different. Crucially, though, they had a way with a hook and the sort of super-slick chunks of distortion that many bands would kill for in a heartbeat. The slickness remains, but the punch has disappeared. If the soaring chorus of Runaways or Old Scars/Future Hearts’ late-era AFI chug get pulses racing for a moment, it’s all too fleeting.
We know there is a market, and likely an appetite, for the theatricality that underpins 'Future Hearts'. It's just been done before, and to a higher standard. File next to Rocky V.
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR
We don't run any advertising! Our editorial content is solely funded by lovely people like yourself using Stereoboard's listings when buying tickets for live events. To keep supporting us, next time you're looking for concert, festival, sport or theatre tickets, please search for "Stereoboard". It costs you nothing, you may find a better price than the usual outlets, and save yourself from waiting in an endless queue on Friday mornings as we list ALL available sellers!
.jpg)
