A Day To Remember – You’re Welcome

Warner Music    release: March 5, 2021

A band I have heard a lot about, but not really listened to their music: A Day To Remember from Ocala, Florida have earned a reputation as the greatest Post-Hardcore underground band in the world. “You’re Welcome” is their third album and was mostly produced by Colin “DOC” Brittain and Jeremy McKinnon.

After the heavy kick-off in Pop-Punk/HC/Nu-Metal manner – tough and precise rhythms, melodies and clear voice alternating with screams – feat. “Brick Wall” and the catchy tune “Mindreader”, I expected the album to continue correspondingly. However, early signs show that this band has much more variety and surprises up their sleeve. “Bloodsucker,” for example, could have come from a pop boy band, if it wasn’t for the rough metal guitars on the chorus. “Last Chance to Dance (Bad Friend)” even undergoes a full transformation into a melodic death metal track (“Resentment” fits into that aisle as well).

What follows are songs straight for airplay with their pop rock alternative appeal: the sarcastic ballad “F.Y.M” (stands for “fuck you money”), “High Diving”, a dancefloor-ready track despite tough metal riffs, “Looks Like Hell” and “Viva La Mexico” – the latter has something of 80s Britpop and is outrageously catchy. “Only Money” crosses over into the boyband genre… and then they return to fun-punk riffs with “Degenerates”. “Permanent” and “Re-Entry” mix various genres in one song with a dominating Rock style, and the album ends with a slightly melancholic note on “Everything We Need”, co-written with multi-platinum superstar Jon Bellion.

In other words, no one can complain about a lack of variety here. A great band that definitely doesn’t disappoint their fans with this album and probably wins over some new ones. Not my personal favorite genre, but I do appreciate skill and quality…

Tracklist:
01. Brick Wall
02. Mindreader
03. Bloodsucker
04. Last Chance to Dance (Bad Friend)
05. F.Y.M.
06. High Diving
07. Resentment
08. Looks Like Hell
09. Viva La Mexico
10. Only Money
11. Degenerates
12. Permanent
13. Re-Entry
14. Everything We Need