Review: Notes On A Conditional Form - The 1975

Review: Notes on a Conditional Form by The 1975 - Another Pop ...

By Tommy Delone


For those that have followed my writings thus far on Osmosis Tones, it’s no secret that I am a BIG fan of The 1975. So naturally, with the release of their fourth studio album, Notes On A Conditional Form, I needed to both write about it, and celebrate like it was Christmas Morning. I put on my mask, grabbed my wired headphones (what am I, made of money??) and went for a nice long walk around beautiful Allston, Massachusetts to give this album the millennial flair it needed to sink in - what better way to honor a defining band of our time than with the topical social distancing walk?


Full disclosure: while flawed, I love this album. It’s an incredible display of the band’s growth since their 2013 debut, as well as a great album that’s essentially about the power of being young in the year 2020. The band allows Notes to showcase their experimental side, giving us more genres than we’ve ever seen prior from them.


The variety on this album is like nothing Matty Healy and the boys have released in the past. The 1975’s albums have always been lengthy and full of variation, but the band continues to expand their scope. With the single “People,” the band gave us a rage-filled societal battlecry a lá white-belt hardcore.  The title track, featuring a speech recording from climate activist Greta Thunberg, serves as a strong message for our generation to unify and fight back. As the album progresses and more musical detours are taken, the tone of the music fluxes depending on lyrical intention. On the Phoebe Bridgers-featuring “Jesus Christ 2005 God Bless America,” Healy conjures the sense of religious militarism so often linked to the struggle and oppression of the LGBTQ+ community. It’s one of the best tracks on the album, with Healy and Bridgers harmonies sending shivers down my spine. 


Another song that is a must-listen is “Roadkill.” My personal favorite track off Notes, it’s the whimsical and honest music that make The 1975 such an accessible, universal, and easily-digestible band. The catchy blues riff, combined with Healy singing about the tribulations of touring across America, was something I never knew I needed, but now I’m not sure if I can live without it. The band also continues to venture into electropop territory, as on “Frail State of Mind” and “What Should I Say,” which add to the band’s canon in this genre beautifully. Much like past electronic successes “TOOTIMETOOTIMETOOTIME” and “Somebody Else,” their synthetic euphoria pays off. 


But let’s address the main issue: I’m tepid towards calling Notes the band’s magnum opus. The album’s “everything but the kitchen sink” approach, despite its career-defining highlights, ultimately creates a bloated product lacking continuity. One of the main draws of the 1975 is how they aim to embody everyone and everything at all times, but this desire to BE the universe and not one with it makes for an album that’s more like a CD bin compilation than consistent musical testament. The album is well produced, and the songs transition well, which makes instances like “Shiny Collarbone” stick out like a piece of shell in your lobster roll. The album is an impressive feat, but it feels like we should hold the band to delivering more of the refinement we know they have. 


Amidst extraordinary times, Notes On A Conditional Form is anything but ordinary. Matty Healy has always written with brutal honesty, and his destiny may very well be to front the band we call humanity. Notes is a bit of a messy and chaotic experiment at times, but the songwriting and the band’s musicianship are on their most gargantuan displays yet.  From a production standpoint, this album is definitely their most complex by far.  But with this being the band’s fourth album in seven years, I think that the best is still to come from The 1975.


BOPS: “Jesus Christ 2005 God Bless America,” “Roadkill,” “The Birthday Party,” “Nothing Revealed/Everything Denied,” “Playing On My Mind,” “What Should I Say,” “People”

DUDS: “Shiny Collarbone,” “Having No Head,” “Bagsy Not in Net,” “Then Because She Goes”

More From Osmosis Tones

Albums of the Month: April

Image
By Zach Zollo Throughout the world, April 2020 was a lost month. The pandemic we are currently facing has brought out the worst in people as often as it has forced us to unite together, leading many to be frightened for the state of the world once we recover. Things, simply put, just keep getting worse. But, on the artistic bright side, it was a STELLAR month for music all across the spectrum.  Fiona Apple told us to fetch the bolt cutters , The Strokes' "new abnormal" turned out to be making music not indebted to  Is This It , Westside Gunn dropped his best project yet  (featuring a cover from Caravaggio) , and Walter Etc. released the best breakup album I've ever heard . On top of all that, here are the best releases from the month that we didn't get the chance to formally review.  Lovesick - RICEWINE I was first exposed to Melbourne’s RICEWINE through receiving his debut album, Today, from Spirit Goth’s Cassette Club. I was i
Read more

Music For Coping With COVID-19

Image
A Note From The Editor As the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 continues to increase, paranoia from misinformation and irresponsibility of leadership skyrockets while the American economy grinds to a halt. Those who need access to proper testing and medical care fear that they won't receive it, all the while the bell curve of the American healthcare system desperately needs to be flattened. Unemployment is only increasing, and the arts and services community - two of the most pivotal influences in my life - have been ravished to a point where a "bounce back" may not be enough.  Essentially, everything is terrible. But to not maintain hope at this time would be the gravest mistake of all. While the new normal has undoubtedly brought forth new trials and tribulations for every single human being, we must follow the guidelines set forth by our public health officials - no exception. Beyond our duties as citizens, we must not forget to face the horro
Read more

Teenage Halloween's Luke Henderiks Brings The Heat

Image
Luke Henderiks (they/them) of New Jersey's Teenage Halloween not only is the frontperson of an excellent band, they just so happen to run their own hot sauce label - Complete Goner Vegan Hot Sauce. To find out more about this culinary endeavor, I (Zach) spoke with them about what inspired them to cook, veganism, and (as always) the current state of DIY.
Read more

Review: Splid - Kvelertak

Image
By Greg Wiacek  Rock n’ roll, hardcore punk and black metal: a recipe that should promise some dirty, crusty, sweaty shit to fill my ears. Unfortunately, Splid , the latest outing from Norway’s Kvelertak, comes across as way too sterile, well-kept and calculated. Ever since the band’s (excellent) 2010 debut, they’ve accumulated a lot of clout from goodwill and networking. Converge’s Kurt Ballou has produced a majority of their records, John Baizley of Baroness created the cover art for their first two, they hang out with some OG 90s black metal musicians, and they have Norwegian song titles - they must be a cool band. But now , these guys sound like if Turbonegro and Fucked Up had a shameful one night stand fueled by alcohol, with blast beats and tremolo riffing added to “spice things up.” Not to say Kvelertak doesn't deserve the respect they’ve received. They still employ 70s rock dual guitar noodling effectively, and their attempts to make some fist-pumping rock
Read more

Review: Likewise - Frances Quinlan

Image
By Greg Wiacek I’m going to try to review Frances Quinlan’s debut solo album without mentioning her voice. Fuck. But what a voice. It’s often the first thing people notice when they hear her band, Hop Along . Raw and powerful yet tender, Quinlan constantly takes it in unpredictable directions, at times pushing it to what sounds like the physical limits of the larynx. Her erratic melodies and penchant for drastic shifts in dynamics (literally going from a scream to a whisper at times) would likely sound like a complete mess if sung by anyone else. But she’s a master at controlling the chaos, making it sound composed, natural, and ultimately captivating. Take, for example, “Waitress,” where her voice sinks with the lyrics “and my heart just sunk,” only to go on to belt out during the climax of the song in one of the most cathartic releases I’ve ever heard.  When she announced that she was releasing a solo album, I was certainly intrigued (particularly with how sh
Read more