YUNGBLUD’s recent album is a tale for the ages. The UK-based singer-songwriter’s sophomore album, weird!, is an ode to the lost youth of today’s society. With tracks about polyamory, depression, and suicide, it leaves almost no stone unturned. While an ambitious project to say the least, the album excels in every area. From the rich lyrics to the musical creativity, weird! delivers a work of art dedicated to those who feel like they don’t belong.
Opening track “teresa” sets a somber yet hailing tone for the album. YUNGBLUD stated that the song was inspired by a fan’s direct message to him about his music helping them cope with the death of their boyfriend. He then came up with the idea to write a song about that exact situation, but from the perspective of the deceased boyfriend. This becomes apparent through the use of lyrics such as, “Every breath I would have taken, I give to you / I won’t breathe again / Although that I’m asleep / As long as I watch over you / We don’t need to run.” While some may have argued “teresa” would’ve been better suited as an album closer rather than opener, I think it was very creative to open with a somber tune. After all, YUNGBLUD is known and loved for being quite the unconventional, anti-establishment — anti-everything — individual.
The second track, “cotton candy” is about YUNGBLUD’s polyamorous tendencies and sexual freedom. A stark change of pace from “teresa,” YUNGBLUD references wanting to get “stuck between your teeth like cotton candy, so you’ll remember me, darling.” The sexual energy on this track is absolutely palpable, and is probably one of the reasons why it is so widely adored: Not only is it catchy as all hell (I’ve seriously played this on repeat so many times) but it delivers a message that most of us are unfamiliar with. YUNGBLUD is no stranger to tackling sensitive topics, and his prowess in representing communities that normally get negative media attention is one of the reasons he has such a loyal fanbase.
This rebellious energy seeps into the third track, “strawberry lipstick,” a song about rejecting the status quo and being your own person. When explaining his reasoning behind the song’s lyrics to Apple Music, YUNGBLUD states, “I fucking hated myself when I wrote that song. I was fighting with people about my sound. And I was like, ‘All right. You want to fucking normalize me? I’m going to dye my hair red, I’m going to write a fucking punk song, and I’m going to wear a Union Jack dress on its cover.’ That’s what I’m like.”
YUNGBLUD’s attitude here pretty much defines the whole album; he is fighting against becoming a mainstream figurehead and doing the opposite of what his managers want, in the name of creative freedom. I admire this attitude greatly, as YUNGBLUD is a true punk rocker who isn’t afraid to stand up for his beliefs, while still producing appealing content. The order here is important, as he does not allow his popularity to influence what music he produces.
“mars,” the fourth song off of weird! is a sweet yet heavy tune about another fan’s life. According to YUNGBLUD, he wrote the song after a fan mentioned how his music helped her transition into and come out to her family as a female. “mars” is definitely one of my favorites off the album, as the message is incredibly deep, the lyrics themselves are interlaced so perfectly (he even stated the song title pays homage to David Bowie’s “Life on Mars?”), and YUNGBLUD’s voice is so passionate throughout. From his screams at the end of the song that die down to a whisper, to the way he layers each instrument on one at a time, it is definitely clear this song took him the longest to perfect.
YUNGBLUD’s love for his fans is monumental, and another song dedicated for his fanbase is “it’s quiet in beverly hills.” His reasoning behind the song was that, as he was working in Los Angeles, he realized just how much he missed being back home in the UK. This song is the product of being homesick and wanting to stray from the toxic superficialities of Hollywood, so he wrote an ode to the people who make him feel like he belongs — his fans.
Embed from Getty Images
Above all, weird! Is a testament to the people who have always felt left out, for the kids who were bullied or picked on for being different, for anyone who has ever felt or been told they are “weird.” This message is present in several tracks, such as the aptly-named song “weird!” which is the embodiment of YUNGBLUD’s realization that he is indeed “weird” and does not need to change for anyone. “charity,” a similar track about being yourself, expresses that if people don’t like your brain, “fucking give it away. Take me to a charity shop because some fucking cool kid is going to pick me up and put me on,” YUNGBLUD tells Apple Music.
Embed from Getty Images
“god save me but don’t drown me out,” a subtle hint to the “God Save the Queen” culture of early punk rock, is a sort of emotional catharsis for YUNGBLUD. He states that he “grew up two years in about 20 minutes. I think you can hear my crying in the song. I just needed help. Not from anyone else—I needed help from myself. It was like, ‘Come on, we’re going to be all right.’ And I think my body went, ‘Yeah, I think we are.’ This song is about overcoming anything. The world is yours if you want it.”
Embed from Getty Images
After reading this statement on what the song is really about, it hit me right in the feels and added a whole new meaning to a song that was already a banger. The closing track, “the freak show,” presents a unique, new type of energy. Harrison has stated this to be his “Bohemian Rhapsody,” something he did solely for his own enjoyment and just because he wanted to make a beast of a song. And at almost five minutes long with five key changes, it definitely delivers.
I can’t pick one favorite song off this album because it is absolutely incredible, but “the freak show” comes extremely close. The way YUNGBLUD tells a story that changes with the keys and shifts with his vocal range, and completes this beauty of an album with a passion-fueled crescendo at the end of the song is pure magic. I can only hope future generations will look back to this album as the poster child for what meaningful music truly is in 2020 and beyond.
Written by Amber Ellertson