Crossfade Reviews: Gang of Youths "angel in realtime."

 by Karl W.

Gang of Youths "angel in realtime."
[Mosy/Warner]
Chamber Pop/Alternative Rock/Worldbeat

    This is my first experience with Gang of Youths, an alternative rock band that has been building up swell in their home country of Australia in the past few years, namely with their sophomore album "Go Farther in Lightness". Yet after that album, there was a bit of a lull in between releases, where lead singer David Le'aupepe's father passed away from cancer in 2018 and founding guitarist Joji Malani left the band in 2019. Throw in a global pandemic for good measure, and that delay is understandable to say the least. Though the band was slowly building up steam with singles being released since June of 2021 hinting at the release of a new album. Now, five years later, we have that follow-up to their breakthrough 2017 album, an ode to Le'aupepe's late father and his legacy. 

    Well, if there was any indication of what I was missing with this band, this album would be it. This album is a triumphant return for the band after five years, with some of the most rich production and heartfelt songs of the year.  It reminds me in some way of one of my favorite albums of last year: Manchester Orchestra's "The Million Masks of God", an album that tackles the complicated feelings of death and finding light past it with those close to you, and it's definitely to this album's benefit. It's clear that the band took all the time they really needed to make this album as grandiose and impactful as ever, and that's clear with how dense nearly every song feels. After an, admittedly somewhat inert opening in "you in everything" (still a good song, but one that lasts maybe a little too long), the album kicks into high gear with the explosive "in the wake of your leave" which immediately became a favorite song of the year contender for me with its driving riffs and soaring chorus. The song is also rather bleak, detailing Le'aupepe's grief over his father's passing, to the point where he struggles finding the emotions or words to truly convey it at his father's funeral. This leads into a bright spot on the album in "the angel of 8th ave.", a similarly fast-paced and catchy song that is about Le'aupepe meeting his wife and moving across the world with her. The song "returner" is a bit of a strange point on the album, with its bar-chanting chorus and odd instrumentation, but is one that is pretty interesting in its lyrics, as Le'aupepe seems to try and find peace where his music meant to pay tribute is also one that would be sold for money. It's cynical, for sure, and a point on the album I'm overall conflicted with, but still pretty fun at points.

    The album explores Le'aupepe exploring his heritage through his lyrics and instrumentation, the most obvious examples being "unison", "spirit boy", and "the kingdom is you", where the Samoan instrumentation feels the most apparent, taking on a worldbeat feeling that doesn't feel out of place at all. "tend the garden" has a very liquid instrumentation to it that feels very distinct in a good way, with the lyrics almost in perspective of his father, where he seems apologetic as he reaches the end of his life, and we don't really get the context of it until we get to the piano ballad "brothers", by far the most emotionally complicated song on this album. This song details all the children Le'aupepe has had across the world who he abandoned. You can tell the emotions on this song are clearly complicated, as Le'aupepe goes to visit his half-siblings who have lived different lives across the world, but who never really have a father in the way that Le'aupepe had, something that Le'aupepe feels slightly guilty over. Still, he tackles his grief and his depression on the next two songs "forbearance" and "the man himself", the latter of which he attempts to find a way to become his own man after all is said and done. The album ends with "hand of god" and "goal of the century", which contextualizes the 1968 FIFA World Cup and the infamous goal that scored Mexico the win that was later revealed to be an illegal play into a metaphor for life itself. Sometimes, big events happen, and you rarely get a chance to catch them before they are just a memory. In the last track, Le'aupepe goes forward and focuses on those close to him, including his friends, bandmates, and his wife.

    The album is dense, to be sure, to the point where it can be a touch tiring when listening through, having to unpack the instrumentation on display in each of these songs. That being said, this is one of those albums where I would go back to individual songs to listen through maybe a handful of times to truly catch everything. Though the album as a whole can be a bit dense for most people to dig into, it holds some of the best songs of the years as well as another emotionally intense narrative. It's only three months in and 2022 has released two emotionally dense and fantastically produced masterpieces, the other being Black Country, New Road's "Ants From Up There", and while I might like that album a little more, this album has so many wonderful moments that it is hard to ignore. Much like an angel in real time, this album is heavenly.

Best Songs: "in the wake of your leave", "the angel of 8th ave.", "tend the garden", "the kingdom is within you", "spirit boy", "brothers", "forbearance", "the man himself", "goal of the century"

Worst Song: "you in everything"

Solid 9/10 (Amazing)