On 2016’s Paradise, White Lung sharpened their aggro garage-rock sound into an infectious blend of punk and pop, and their long-awaited fifth—and, sadly, final—album, Premonition, further refines the one-time hardcore punks’ wild thrash-pop. Throughout, Kenneth William’s sharp, icy guitar lines are drenched in chorus and flanger effects, while drummer Anne-Marie Vassiliou propels the songs with the same reckless fury that gave the band’s earliest releases their frenetic edge.
With “Hysteric,” the album explodes out of the gate with a noodling riff and tumbling drums, as frontwoman Mish Barber-Way—who’s traded throat-shredding shrieks for a more controlled, melodic approach after damaging her voice in 2014—mocks patriarchal gender dynamics. “Oh, what a waste to be burdened with the hollow demands of another man’s head,” she wails.
White Lung keeps their foot on the throttle for “Date Night,” in which Barber-Way imagines God as a nihilistic, drunk-driving bad boy who promises to take her away from the “hot and dirty” L.A. wasteland. “I won’t stay here to see it burn/Will you?” she asks. Barber-Way is no stranger to examining her (sometimes paradoxical) views and desires in her songwriting, and the song sees her embracing the contradictions that come with being an L.A.-based punk singer who also dreams of leaving the SoCal metropolis behind and moving to the country with her husband.
Things slow down momentarily when, on “Under Glass,” White Lung allows themselves their most shameless pop moment. The title is a nod to Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar, expanding on the novel’s theme of suffocating depression in its description of a hard-to-grasp loss of self: “To you I’m bound, while I fake the guise, of a person, of a working mind.” Aided by William’s crystalline arpeggios, Barber-Way’s vocal harmonies prove to be particularly affecting, her voice carrying what is perhaps the most accessible song of the band’s career.
Premonition’s cavernous, arena-ready production is a holdover from White Lung’s previous album, but the results are even moodier and more anthemic this time around. Synthesizers enhance the songs’ withering hooks, adding an extra emotional dimension to the band’s deceptively straightforward aural assault. Tracks like “Mountain” and “Bird” manage to deliver both well-constructed pop melodies and pummeling speed, while “One Day” shines with digitally flanged guitar leads and sizzling chords whose nervy energy is compounded with an assured vocal delivery unrivaled by any of Barber-Way’s peers.
Motherhood, including Barber-Way’s second pregnancy, is referenced on the album’s cover art, a grotesque collage that evokes a flyer for a college punk show. But even as the lyrics to songs like “Bird” address the singer’s unborn child—“You’ll find me on the outside, waiting in light, and I’ll hold on to you”—the band doesn’t stoop to sentimentality. Rather, William and Vassiliou intensify their mosh-pit frenzy, making for one of Premotion’s most cathartic moments.
Songs like those capture the ever-evolving band at the height of their powers. Once again, they infuse their brand of punk with a hefty dose of pop songcraft and meticulous production, courtesy of producer Jesse Gander, Premonition conjures a dark, enticing dynamism unparalleled even by their own extraordinary output.
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