I still think of Oh the Humanity! as one of those legendary DIY bands that made the scene throughout the 2010s what it is today. This may be why I cannot remember the first time I saw them or where that might have been. It’s probably Fest. The answer tends to be that more often than not.
What I do know is that over the past few years, I’ve grown lucky enough to have booked them in New York multiple times, and I got to see them play all over the place. These days, I am genuinely honored to be able to call them my friends. If you’ve ever seen them play, you can see the enthusiasm, compassion for others, love for their communities, and excitement to do what they’re doing. Hell, you can hear those things by just putting on a record. This is the same energy they all bring out as people, and if there’s one thing I can get behind, it’s top tier music released by top-tier people.
It’s practically a crime that I have no review up for their last release, Ground to Dust, which came out all the way back in January.
They decided on an instrumental opener with Imposter Syndrome, and though I usually am not the biggest fan of those, it’s kept under a minute and seamlessly blends into the next song.
Gutted starts it off with the skate-punk sound that attracts crowds in Europe and Canada, but is a rare find in the Northeast of the United States – though recent years have seen more bands come up. It does what it does, and it does it strongly. Give me more of this, forever. Give me those riffs, those drum fills, the shouty parts, the backing vocals. Give me the production where nothing drowns out anything else, with no fuzziness, just clarity. Give me the energy. Hell, give me these lyrics, that duality of self-doubt and wanting to be better – I’ve always enjoyed my emotional arcs to the louder songs.
“I want to feel warm, uncomfortable being comfortable. I want to feel whole, uncomfortable being comfortable. Better off alone, but I hate being alone.”
Next up is Upper Riffspiratory Infection. They’re leaning slightly more into the influence of their friends in A Wilhelm Scream. Compared to the previous song, it feels faster and heavier on the riffs, and how Kyle actually manages to do some of these parts on the bass is a mystery to all. Then we get a calmer bridge, one step closer to melodic punk than it is to skate punk, only for the song to close out with the same energy with which it started.
“Old wounds can’t reopen when we stretch ourselves too thin.”
The intro of Worth Nothing sets the atmosphere. There’s anticipation, expectation, and some seamless interchange between Chris’ and Jim’s communication of guitar parts. When the song fully kicks in, you understand why. You can take away the vocals, and the song would still tell the same story: one of resistance, one of overcoming expectations. It’s there in every part.
“They keep telling us we’re worth nothing. They keep telling us keep your heads down, keep on working.”
The next song, Love Irresolute, has been one of my favorite songs on this record. The intro feels like a long lost friend, telling me it’s going to be all right. Then it lets the skate punk influences rest for a bit, leaning into its vulnerability. It took me three full listens to even be able to write this short paragraph. Stop making me feel, guys.
“Stop making me beg you to tell the truth, the way this all is turning love irresolute.”
Time to move on, lean back into the skate punk, and find the metal influences that they don’t hide at all. Circumstances is the kind of song that explains why Shrug Dealer and Oh the Humanity! are often mentioned in the same breath – by the 20 people who listen to both bands, that is. It’s got the we want to write songs people haven’t heard before, not songs that can become immediate hits vibe all over it, and that’s what makes it stand out. It’s a bit too chaotic for me, but they can get away with it – very few bands can. It’s fast, it moves around, and it doesn’t feel like a three-minute song at all.
“Could you comprehend the circumstances that could upend your comfortable life and put you in the same place as them?”
On Blues, the shortest song on the album, Oh the Humanity! keeps the “how does anyone play a full live set of this” BPM. There’s a catchy chorus, some backing vocals, a fun little guitar solo around the bridge. It’s a good song, it really is, it just doesn’t stand out much.
“It could make me question everything, every decision that I’ve made, watch the scales as they sling, wondering where they’ll rest.”
Never Do Another Rule once again hits on the skate punk sound that works really well in Europe. There are some interesting transitions in this song, giving you three separate sounds in the one song, without feeling incoherent – like I said, it’d do well in Europe. Tini’s (Chris, they have two of them) drums are what really stand out here, but I lack the music theory to explain why; I can only say that they do.
“Why put all these rules in place, now every choice I make’s a failure, break them down and build me up again.”
Things calm down again in Last Gasp. That doesn’t mean it’s not loud, and it doesn’t mean they gave up on trying to cram as much music in the song as they can, but it’s a more predictable song structure and not done at ‘guys, seriously, how’ speeds. The part at the end, the slow build-up moving into a desperate plea over the screeching guitars? It’s one of the strongest moments the record has to offer.
“But I feel fine. But I feel fine, is what I tell myself when I know I’ve had enough and I can’t take anymore.”
Oh the Humanity! really loves playing around with speed and impact, and Siren Song is another song hitting those notes. It might be because I spent the last hour or two going through each song a few times, or because midnight is around the corner, but it’s starting to get tiring at this point. It feels like this song has already been recorded on the album, and better at that. Though… I really dig the chorus.
“Hold me tighter in your death grip, sing me a mourning song, your haunted melody pulled me in, and now I sing along.”
The worst part of reviewing track-by-track is when that last song comes on, and you remember it being six minutes long. I’ve said this before in earlier reviews, but no one needs that. Have mercy on the person reviewing, please. That said, it reminds me of the older songs that are the singalongs at their live shows, so maybe they’re on to something. The call-and-response of “I’d rather be dying if I’m feeling this way” is strong, and the repeated part that ties it together hits on a personal level. The muted, resigned, “do what you love before time takes it from you” ends the record with the sentiment it started with, a wish to be better, a wish to fix the past mistakes, and a certainty in embracing who you are.
“So I’ve been here waiting for us to finally fix this mess that we created, swallow feelings for your sake, and maybe we can move on, except that things will never change, except the pain will always stay.”
This is the kind of record that hits a lot of sweet spots for me. The production is outstanding, and I don’t say that lightly – many great records have been put aside by me due to the lack of clarity. It’s fast and technical without losing touch. It’s got moments of introspection and moments of extroversion. It’s been a rough one to write without being too biased. Just do yourself a favor, pick up a copy, follow these guys everywhere, and go see them play.
