Album Rating: 1.0

Like you say “writing about a friend” is inherently profound, the quality and character of any topic is how you approach that topic, not the topic itself

Album Rating: 3.5

"And what about “cheap emotional exploitation” implies industry plant rather than just characterless, lazily manipulative songwriting?" It's looking WAY too deep into it. You can't just automatically assume that everyone who writes about that stuff has the worst intentions. It'd be one thing if he was pulling a Logic and threw a "who can relate? WOOOO" in the middle. but this is batshit insane, Vessel sounds genuinely earnest and heartbroken over a friend hurting themselves.

"Like you say “writing about a friend” is inherently profound, the quality and character of any topic is how you approach that topic, not the topic itself" that's not what I meant, i mean that it's not inherently a vice to manipulate.

Are you really okay is the only song here I genuinely detest. It feels so artless, taking this delicate raw topic and just thudding it down on the table expecting applause

"This implies industry plant/fake"
this is a major label band propped up by a vacuous marketing schtick we have established this we have established why people might think this
"So writing a song about caring about a friend is exploitative"
gonna have to refer you to the entire second half of that paragraph you conveniently omitted there

Album Rating: 3.5

I feel like this says more about people here being way too cynical for their own good than actual issues with the song. I'd get it if Vessel pulled a Logic or sounded like Owl City/uncaring while singing, but he sounds genuinely torn up over the situation it's about.

Is that not s u b j e c t i v e

Album Rating: 1.0

You said “So writing a song about caring about a friend is exploitative?”



It can be, yes. Johnny is saying, and is not the only one saying, that the execution here absolutely feels pandering and exploitative, which, you know, is the point of writing a review to analyze something rather than just slapping a low rate on it and shitposting in the comments.



And if that’s not what you meant, once again take a class. Learn to actually write what you mean.

Album Rating: 3.5

You can't fake the honest to god pain in his voice. You can usually tell when someone's faking it. This isn't it.

I too can do a wobbly fake cry voice

Album Rating: 4.5

Why are you still crying about Johnny not liking this record? :pepestop:

Album Rating: 1.0

Eat some peanut butter right before you step into the vocal booth and you’ll get exactly the same effect



To that extent an actor could never pull off an emotional scene. And tbh the execution here is corny and overblown as all hell, thing sounds like the sort of goofy nonsense a STOOGE band might pull

Album Rating: 2.0

The thing with Are You Really Okay? is that it reeks of self-insertion into someone else’s mental health struggle.



“Don’t you know I was trying to hold back the darkness” / “Don’t you know I want to help you but I don’t know how?” / “I cannot fix your wounds this time”



I get writing a song about someone going through shit but it’s literally saying nothing but “damn man I feel bad for you hope things get better!” instead of having any profound narrative about what mental distress, cutting, suicidal tendencies, etc actually feel like.



It’s written from an outsiders perspective in some of the most basic and uninspired ways.

Who cares y'know it's performing whether genuinely felt or not, wouldn't matter if the songwriting was any good

Album Rating: 2.0

Not to mention it has like 8 unique lines of lyrics despite being over 5 minutes long.

i'm going to posit once again that everything about his vocal approach sounds gross and contrived to me and that faking emotional tells has been the musician's playbook ever since audience-performer distance became a thing. there are talented people who do this extremely successfully have a little respect for the craft please

wow this thread moves fuckin fast hell yeah

Album Rating: 3.5

This still reeks of a bizarrely high amount of cynicism and looking too deep into things IMO. Like people, the guys in this band were already somewhat established in the UK scene before, but none of their old bands blew up like this because none of them did anything to stand out marketing wise. It's what you gotta do in this hellscape of an economy. You can't blame them for gaming the system when it's as broken as it is.

Also, I find it disgusting that there's even an inkling of a chance people would be able to (FALSELY) accuse me of faking my emotions in my songs when EVERYTHING i write is straight from the heart.

Album Rating: 2.0

So you’re saying this band pulled the same thing MGK did when his rap career didn’t take off - pivot and prey on the sad boys and girls online with a “unique image”. Easy money, right?



Shouldn’t read too deep into MGKs lyricism and songwriting either because it’s coming STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART.

Album Rating: 3.5

I'm saying they came up with a marketing gimmick that stood out to get eyes on them. You can retain your artistic integrity musically while still gaming the system with the marketing because CAPITALISM IS THE PROBLEM HERE.

With MGK, it just SOUNDED hokey and phony. This doesn't feel that way to me.

Album Rating: 2.0

tik tok was just banned in montana



what does this mean for sleep token?