HELLMODE - Jeff Rosenstock: Review

Jeff Rosenstock

is a New York DIY legend who spent the 2000s with explosive punk and ska bands like Bomb The Music Industry! and The Arrogant Sons Of Bitches. In the 2010s he pivoted to a solo career that received massive critical acclaim for albums like We Cool?, Worry, and No Dream. HELLMODE is his 5th studio album and follows the longest gap in projects since he began his solo career. 

Review by Lav:

I've dished out a lot of praise for Jeff Rosenstock on this blog. I loved his previous album No Dream in 2020 with its jittery punk intensity and distinctive social and political undertones. Even my least favorite of his solo albums the surprise-released Post- is still quite an enjoyable outing with some incredible highlights like 9/10. So Jeff Rosenstock gearing up to release a new album is exciting because his floor is higher than almost anyone around and his ceiling is album of the year every time he drops. While the latter is to be determined, HELLMODE being a great album is painfully obvious.

The most distinct thing about the album sonically is that after years as the DIY king Jeff Rosenstock is turning to a bit more polished and fleshed-out sound than ever before. The second half of lead single LIKED U BETTER is a pretty good example with punchy riffs that would have normally been presented in much more raw and isolated fashion on previous songs. They pair well with a chanted hook for a song that sounds like it could be an early Jeff solo track remastered. 

Sometimes the transition can be a bit rocky. WILL U STILL U starts off much more raw with a very heartfelt beginning before exploding into a more fleshed-out core. Ultimately while it's a solid start to the record I can't say I like the second half of the song as much as the first. SOFT LIVING is one of the only songs here I have trouble really figuring out thematically. The combination of softly political musings with a handful of vague pop culture references doesn't really appear to add up to that much. At the very least the song has a distinct feeling which I think it mostly gets from the instrumental progression. 

Elsewhere on the record are tracks that sound like exactly what you'd expect from Jeff. The jamming surf rock of I WANNA BE WRONG and the charming nihilism of FUTURE IS DUMB are both slam dunks for Jeff's sound and style of songwriting. Speaking of songwriting, that is by far the best part of HELLMODE. While the album traffics in some occasionally awkward instrumental flavors and isn't quite as packed with catchy refrains as previous outings, Jeff has a lot to say on this album and it's almost all worth hearing. 

The second single DOUBT was by far my favorite and it's easily one of the best songs here. I love the anguished verses which build and build. The song waits for the absolute perfect moment to rev up the energy and cuts in a surprisingly triumphant blast of sound on the hook. It's presents a full emotional journey that I was happy to go on every single time. HEALMODE was a curious single for me at first but I started to like it more and more as I looked into the lyrics. It features some of Jeff's most detailed and down-to-earth observations to date and that also just made me appreciate the song's subtle beauty more and more.

The album also ends off on a strong note. Once again GRAVEYARD SONG doesn't necessarily blow me away sonically but I love the lyrics. It isn't even just the charming individual lyrics but the entire thematic presentation of the song as a whole. 3 SUMMERS is a seven-minute closing track and while I haven't loved some of Jeff's longer songs in the past this one is thankfully a big highlight with impressively distinct passages throughout. 

HELLMODE is a cohesive album for both its strongest and weakest elements. While there aren't as many sonic highlights on this album as say Jeff's last project SKA DREAM, I think it paints a much clearer lyrical picture. Throughout this record Jeff's fascination at the decay of the world around him is so funny you might not even realize how bleak it can be at times. Despite that, there are moments on the record of genuine, soaring optimism that are hard not to buy into. As an album long experience, HELLMODE is the definition of greater than the sum of its parts. 7.5/10

For more punk check out my review of the new Squid album O Monolith