I took today off of work to get some stuff done around the house. All I got done was napping in different rooms of said house and going through some emails. It has me feeling a little discouraged but I keep trying to tell myself that there’s nothing wrong with taking a mental health day every now and then. That being said, I will not let tonight get away from me as I did with the day so here I am, sitting at my desk, chugging coffee, and trying to find the motivation to get some work done. A new soundtrack has always been a great way for me to find motivation so I reached into my stack of albums to review and pulled out ‘Modern Female Rockstar’ by The Sonder Bombs. Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, I put the CD in my stereo and hit play.
It took a little it for me to get into “Atom” (the opening track) but, as soon as I did, I was in love. There’s a playful feeling to the instrumentation of this opening track but there’s also a slight edge to the vocals. As the song hit its stride, my love for The Sonder Bombs deepened. Their sound is upbeat and full of energy but their lyrics are painfully real and the way they are presented is so full of heart that it’s goosebump-inducing. This opening track is a banger and made me excited to see what else will come with the nine-track album.
“U(ke) Ain’t Enough” is a short track at under two minutes but it’s great. Again, it was the vocals that really hit me right where it counts with this track and, although the lyrics did next to nothing for me, again, the presentation was perfect. Even though it seems to be a song about replacing your ukelele with a guitar, “Pot & Kettle” kicks off with a ukulele (or else something that sounds like a ukelele). This track showcases some background vocals that have an almost choral arrangement sound to them which really stood out to me. Beyond that little piece of this song, overall it’s a beautiful track, again, filled to the brim with all-too-real lyrics that I found myself completely lost in.
The fourth track is “Title” and was an instant favorite of mine. Addressing all of the issues of being a female in the music industry, I couldn’t help but just sit here and nod to every line. “I don’t wanna be your merch girl… and I don’t wanna have to work twice as hard…” It’s not something I talk much about in this blog because, well, I have no good reason for it. The fact is, being a female in the music industry is rough regardless of what you do in said industry and to hear a track that calls this out while showing some teeth was absolutely refreshing and just what I needed before diving into some work tonight (that’s in the industry).
“Shoot 2 Kill” was another instant favorite. This track is more hurried than the previous tracks and has a bit more of a garage-punk edge to it while the vocals stay very clear and concise. Unfortunately, this track is literally seconds long, and just when I was about ready to grab a cat and dance around with him (Artie was the closest cat to me), the album moved onto “Wild”. Although “Shoot 2 Kill” had me feeling a little feisty, “Wild” calmed down the mood in the blink of an eye. There’s a sense of bitterness and heartbreak in this track that I found addicting. It’s definitely a slower track compared to the previous songs and not quite what I was looking for when it came to getting amped up to get some work done, but still, a beautiful track that only The Sonder Bombs could pull off.
Quick reminder- I’m a lyrics lady. Okay, now that we’ve gotten that in the back of your head, let me tell you how amazing “Something I Said” is. Although my love life is going pretty great right now, this track made me look back on so many failed relationships and almost finding the closure that I may have never gotten. There’s an anthemic feel to this song that just drives the point of the lyrics home. The sentiment of “Something I Said” flows nicely into “Dimly Lit” which is another slower, yet beautiful, track. You really get to see the full range of the vocalist on this track and it’s impressive, to say the least. The instrumentation takes a backseat making this feel like more of a ballad than anything else.
I thought that The Sonder Bombs had laid out everything in the previous tracks that I needed to fall in love with them and then “Twinkle Lights” hit my speakers. “There’s nothing really wrong with me…” that opening line was all I needed to hear to know that this would be yet another favorite track of mine. This is the perfect ending to a perfect album and it left me with a sense of energy and motivation that I was looking for and oh so much more.
The Sonder Bombs are on my radar. This album is pure gold. Each track bought something new with it and also put a smile on my face even with the all-too-real lyrics that can sometimes make me feel vulnerable and uncomfortable. I finished listening to this album ready to take on the night with a sense of warmth in my heart and a knock on my door from my neighbor for playing this too loud.
My Favorite Track(s): “Title”; “Shoot 2 Kill”; “Twinkle Lights”
For Fans Of: Female Empowerment; Dancey little numbers with great lyrics; A love/hate relationship with ukuleles
Dance-ability: 7 out of 10
What My Cats Thought Of It: Artie ran from me as soon as I started looking around for a dance partner for “Shoot 2 Kill”; Autumn slept upstairs
How Badly I Want To See This Performed Live: 9 out of 10
My Overall Rating: 8 out of 10
Check Out The Sonder Bombs Here:
Check out ‘Modern Female Rockstar’ HERE!
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