“I’m a zero, a weirdo and a struggling superhero.”
That is how Everything I Ever Saw begins, but at the heart of “Chance Encounters” is a desperate need for connection. Somewhere between Hot Water Music and The Gaslight Anthem comes the thought that they might never stand a chance, but they have still got to try.
That, really, is The Menzingers all over. The world might be falling apart, everything might hurt and hope might be hanging by a thread, but giving up is never quite an option.
“Better Angels” has the same energy. It sounds like it is searching for something — anything — that might help its characters get through. There is urgency in the guitars and desperation in the vocals, but melody remains at the centre of it all.
“Romanticism” offers the invitation to come and tear your heart apart with them. Where were The Menzingers 20 years ago, when I still gave a shit?
The crucial thing is that they mean every word. There is no fake emotion here and nothing that feels added for effect. The last three years have brought enormous changes within the band. Greg Barnett got married and welcomed his first child, while Tom May went through a divorce and found himself dealing with new emotional territory both inside and outside The Menzingers.
They are no strangers to writing about relationships ending, but divorce is different. It cuts deeper, leaves stranger scars and makes the past harder to separate from the present. That sense of trying to understand what has happened runs throughout the record.
They are not a one-trick pony, either. Working again with Will Yip, who previously helped bring out their more expansive side, “Other People’s Money” slows things down and creates more room for the song to breathe.
“Gasoline & Matches” has the same instinct for melody as something Deacon Blue might do, only with a healthy dose of nihilism thrown in. That balance is one of the album’s real strengths. The songs are catchy enough to sound uplifting, even when the words suggest that everything is anything but.
“The Fool” is another example of how good the vocal interplay is. The harmonies are superb, with the different voices complementing each other rather than competing. There is a warmth to the sound, even when the subject matter is bruised and uncertain.
“We are nobody’s heroes because we can only be ourselves,” goes the central thought on “Nobody’s Heroes.”
The Menzingers really are kings of the slogan. They have a way of finding simple lines that sound made to be shouted back at them by a packed room, yet never feel contrived. Here, that line becomes an admission as much as a declaration. They cannot save anyone. They can only be honest about who they are.
“Breathe With Me” is melodic, but it also feels like the band are trying to rid themselves of some enormous weight. The guitar work is wonderful, carrying the song without overwhelming it, and there is a sense of release in the way everything builds.
Even the lighter, airier “When She Enters My Dreams” is shot through with stark reality. On this album, nothing is allowed to become completely carefree. Memories hover over everything, sometimes offering comfort and sometimes making it impossible to move forward.
“Parade Day” also underlines how good the musicianship is across the record. The emotional weight of The Menzingers’ writing can sometimes dominate the conversation, but the playing deserves attention too. The guitars are consistently excellent, whether they are driving the songs forward or adding small details around the edges.
The title track ends the record with a similar feeling to the one with which it began. “I take the happy with the sad” might be the idea, although sadness has always had the better songs, right?
“I don’t wanna relive, I just wanna remember” seems to nail the whole thing. Everything I Ever Saw is not about trying to return to the past. It is about accepting that the past happened, carrying it with you and attempting to understand what it made you.
On Everything I Ever Saw, The Menzingers have taken everything that has happened to them and turned it into utter gold — on their own terms, as only they can.
Rating: 8/10
