"Kiss My Super Bowl Ring" is a hodgepodge of ideas that come together to form a chaotic hit or miss record.
By Gavin Majeski
Twins Wyatt and Fletcher Shears have always had an enigmatic sound that is ever evolving, boding strange vocals with high-energy, experimental production. The twins call it "vada vada," and Wyatt Shears describes it as "an idea that represents pure creative expression, that disregards all previously made genres and ideals."
With "Kiss My Super Bowl Ring" we see the brothers spiral down a path of pure havoc as the record contains some of the band’s most aggressive songs to date. Many tracks feature heavy electronic breakbeats and indiscernible hardcore punk screams. Contrary to their previous projects that feature more garage and art rock instrumentation, booming trap base can be heard sprinkled all across "Kiss My Super Bowl Ring."
Though an interesting blend of sounds, tracks like "Kiss My Super Bowl Ring," "The King of Cutting Corners" and "Low Rider Slug" push the explosive bass to grading lengths as the production sounds overly compressed. The intro track "Clenched to Stay Awake" is a slow burner that doesn’t firmly establish any of the albums themes and transitions into the messy, "A Struggle."
The song opens with terrifying vocals that 180 into a chorus reminiscent of the band’s catchier noise-pop tracks on previous projects. Even with a great chorus, the whole song feels unorganized as the band bounces back and forth between a hardcore punk rager and melodic ballad.
Where the album excels is when blending the sticky choruses with fantastic drumming and breakbeat electronics. Tracks such as "Sneaky Devil," "A Fool’s Expedition," "AMPM Truck," "Hit Eject" and "Please, Fuck Off" are excellent examples of the record’s best.
The album and title track name, "Kiss My Super Bowl Ring" is the band saying "kiss my ass" to anyone and everyone. While choosing to follow their own songwriting conventions in the process, "Kiss My Super Bowl Ring" is a decent outing from the band but lacks focus and structure.
Favorite Tracks: Sneaky Devil, A Fool’s Expedition, AMPM Truck, Hit Eject, Lurkin’, Please, Fuck Off
6.5/10