Review Summary: Highly Suspect's sophomore effort switches things up significantly, but ends up forfeiting a lot of what made their debut great.
Highly Suspect are an alternative rock trio hailing from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, consisting of frontman Johnny Stevens, and brothers Ryan and Rich Meyer. The band got a lot of major radio play in 2015 with their hit single 'Lydia', earning a Grammy nomination in the process. The entire album was filled to the brim with bluesy, almost stoner rock riffs and groovy bass lines rarely seen in mainstream rock, with the band absolutely reveling in their current rockstar persona.
Sadly, a lot of that swagger found on their debut LP is absent on 'The Boy Who Died Wolf'. Lead single 'My Name is Human', tries its hand at a slightly more subtle, almost atmospheric sound, which is totally lost when Johnny adopts a dangerously close to hip-hop vocal melody in the verses. The band must be applauded for trying their hand at something different, however, the aforementioned change in tone is jarring to say the least.
'Look Alive, Stay Alive' comes roaring in directly afterwards with a punkish aggression and ends up being one of the album's best moments. It is sadly cut way too short, being a measly two minutes in length.
Songs like 'For Billy' and 'Little One', while not being the most unique songs the band has to offer, at least manage to entertain. The same cannot be said for a number of other tracks, however. Johnny sounds downright bored on 'Postres', where 'F.W.Y.T' seems to just bore the listener, with a repeating and plainly uninteresting vocal performance fronting an electronic instrumental that goes nowhere fast, making it the worst song Highly Suspect has made by a mile.
The lyricism on 'The Boy Who Died Wolf' also leaves much to be desired. The pseudo political lyrics on 'Viper Strike' talk of dick sucking and priest molestation, turning a potentially interesting topic into something more akin to a bad joke barely worth a chuckle, while 'Seratonia' opens with a very charming line about masturbating, while trying to be dramatic and serious in tone.
Fortunately, the album ends on a higher note with the piano(!) ballad 'Chicago' and the absolutely phenomenal seven minute closer, 'Wolf', a track that progresses well and justifies its length. The guitar work on this track is especially great, featuring an awe inspiring guitar solo that leaves you salivating for more.
So for better or worse, 'The Boy Who Died Wolf' is not the same album as 'Mister Asylum' at times, the experimentation pats off very well, but there are just as many (if not, more) moments where Highly Suspect overreach their boundaries. If they can release an album that combines the best facets of this album with their debut, they'll have a real banger on their hands, but for now, we're all stuck with this.
Recommended Tracks:
Look Alive, Stay Alive
Chicago
Wolf
Little One
