"Greatest Hits": Waterparks prove they're more than a pop punk band
- tatimonty
- May 21, 2021
- 3 min read
Waterparks' third album, FANDOM (2019), saw them starting to move away from the pop punk genre they had found themselves in. Their fourth album, Greatest Hits, sees them strengthening that space between them and the genre. In fact, it really defies the boundaries and limits of genres, crossing them from song to song.
For every song that could potentially be classified as pop punk, like lead single "Lowkey as Hell," there's another that strays far from that -- and that they do so well. Hell, even the pop punk ones have the energy and quality of pop punk anthems.
And their intro songwriting and production has only gotten better since FANDOM, something that seemed hard to do when that album had an intro song like "Cherry Red." But the title and intro track "Greatest Hits" is a polar opposite to the 2019 intro track. It builds slowly, from a single vocal, to some harmonies, to this big production. In some ways, its reminiscent to an opening of a musical. And it ends with a line perfect for the intro track: "These are your greatest hits."
Then there's the transitions between songs. The first example is the transition between "Numb" and "Violet!" The static guitar note that fades "Numb" out blends really smoothly into the guitar chords that start "Violet!" Five tracks later comes the seamless transition between the distorted outro of "You'd Be Paranoid Too (If Everyone Was Out to Get You)" and the soft notes of the beginning of "Fruit Roll Ups." Saying it's a seamless transition doesn't really do it justice unless you hear it for yourself.
The album also features singer Awsten Knight demonstrating the wide range of what he can do. From the falsettos in "Greatest Hits" and "Violet!" to the fast raps in "Numb" and "See You in the Future" (holy hell the rap on "See You In the Future," by the way. It's insane. Also that "woo" around the 1:38 mark I swear is in my room every time and not part of the song) all the way to whatever the hell the vocals in "LIKE IT" and "Ice Bath" can be considered. And don't even get me started on all of the harmonies. There's so many and all of them are amazing. He holds no punches back vocally or lyrically and the result is an incredible mix of songs. And vibes. And genres.
I've always been a fan of Waterparks' angrier songs, but "LIKE IT" really takes the cake. It opens and ends with audio from an interview with Rock Sound. Everything in between is so loud, energetic, and angry yet fun at the same time. It's an honest vent of Knight's frustrations. It's like this big explosion and it created an insanely good song, sonically and lyrically. There's so much going on all at once, but that doesn't detract from anything.
The record cycles really well through emotions and vibes, nothing feeling quite out of place, despite how drastic they can be sonically from each other. Take for example, the pair "Just Kidding" and "The Secret Life of Me." "Just Kidding" is an emotional low on the album, while "The Secret Life of Me" is the disassociation from that. Sonically, "The Secret Life of Me" sounds so bright and lively -- opposite to the sound of "Just Kidding." They work so powerfully next to each other.
This album really is best listened to in the dark and alone, with your headphones turned up -- and I'm not just saying this because it's A) how I suggest listening to most albums, and B) how Knight always insists you listen to their music for the first time. It seriously is an album best experienced that way.
Greatest Hits may not be an actual compilation of Waterparks' best tracks like the name might suggest, but what it is is even better. It is, instead, a show of what they can do, the boundaries they can cross, and the genres they can bend and break. It's proof that they are more than just another pop punk band.
Favorite Tracks: "Violet!," "The Secret Life of Me," "Snow Globe," "LIKE IT," & "Magnetic"
(Going to be honest though, they're all contenders for a spot on the favorite track list)
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