Review Summary: Yes, All Time Low, indeed you are stuck in a rut.
So Wrong, It's Right was a clever pop-punk album in my opinion, but All Time Low seems to have taken a step in the negative direction with Nothing Personal. When I opened the CD and looked inside the lyric booklet, I found each of the band members flipping me off. So...you're...insulting me for buying your CD? While some may have broken down in tears, I decided to still go ahead and give the album a listen. But then the f-bomb is dropped in the first verse of the first track and lead single, "Weightless," and the singer seems to feel so cool singing it. These factors combined already drop them half of a rating point for my review. Sorry, kids.
However, I did give this album a 3, which means "Good." Most of the choruses are memorable, and the verses aren't too bad, but they struggle in the area of lyrics on many tracks. "Too much of anything is too much," is the first line in the chorus of the surprisingly titled "Too Much." Thank you, Captain Obvious.
I must hand it to the boys, though. Musically, this is a a solid album for the most part. I've found myself singing along with most of the songs after three or four listens. "Stella" has a surprising chord progression that doesn't sound like something you'd normally expect from All Time Low, but in a good way. The following track, "Sick Little Games," is a fun-to-sing power ballad, and one of my favorites from the album.
I do get the feeling that the band is taking itself too seriously, though. Yes, they've gotten popular, but they know and like that a little much, and it shows. They seem to have decided to just stop trying very hard on some of the songs, assuming that their fans would love whatever they released.
I hope these guys can mature enough to realize that this album was a slight step backwards. Improving their lyrics and gaining control of their big heads would be ideal for whatever they do next. I still like All Time Low, and expect better things from them in the future.
