- [Mic] Go to the description to vote on who gets covered for next month's dive, and also check out the Spotify playlist with all the songs from
this video and more. Thanks and enjoy. Welcome back to the Deep
Discog Dive and I'm pissed. Every month I take a look at artists who are "critically acclaimed." The market is cornered by Big Consensus and I refuse to play along. Like, look at this! No! I'd love to talk about a divisive band, figure out why they're so divisive, and see if we miss anything by just outright rejecting them. I want all of those things, but I don't know where to start. Well, paying my electric
bill might be a good start. βͺ Still I'm not feeling grown βͺ βͺ Been a hell of a ride βͺ βͺ But I'm thinking it's time to go βͺ Here we go. Today, we're talking about AJR. Let's dive in. (trombone honking) Adam, Jack and Ryan Met are three brothers born and raised in New York city. If you put their names together, you get Ajar Yack Damn. But if you separate them,
take their first initials, and put those together, you get AJR. The trio grew up first in
Queens, then in Manhattan. While attending the
Professional Children's School, they started getting into
writing and performing music. Much of their early experience was busking in Central Park and
Washington Square Park, and the money they earned was
used to buy more instruments, more gear, and eventually
a full-on recording studio in the living room of
their Chelsea apartment. They released two albums
in 2010 and an EP in 2012, but they've been lost to time. Their earliest body of
work that currently exists is the "I'm Ready" EP from 2013. Nearly all of these songs would
go onto their first album, but before that, let's
talk about the title track. I don't think I've ever
dedicated a full section of a DDD to a song before, but I want
to with "I'm Ready" because it's a textbook example
of their songwriting and production styles,
for better or worse. If an AI had to write the
defacto 2013 pop song, it would probably sound like "I'm Ready," except for one part, but I'll
touch on that in a moment. Upbeat production, lyrics
about seizing the night with someone you fancy. The music video has a very 2013 feel, with the band going from a
routine college dorm performance, I think, to blowing up on social media. There's a reference to
"Glee," and I'm sure these guys were just
gunning to have their song performed by Dominant Seventh Sharp Ninth Alongside Pedestrian Crosswalk, so it's a totally acceptable song. No big deal, right? Here's the thing, though. The title of the song comes from a sample, which raises the question, "What are they sampling?" - [SpongeBob] I'm ready! - [Mic] So the group's first big single bases itself around a SpongeBob sample. Now, to be clear, I have
no problem with SpongeBob. It was one of my favorite shows growing up and its humor has aged so well. If you came up to me and
quoted a line from the show, I'd probably respond with, "Sorry, I don't speak Italian." But I don't know. It's weird to force nostalgia into your otherwise basic love song like this. It's like if I propose to
someone by serenading them with "My Shiny Teeth and Me." Plus, SpongeBob's endearing, but he's also meant to be kind of annoying. And if you don't think so,
I guarantee you'll agree by the last chorus of the song. Hopefully, this'll be the
last time they try using nostalgia as a substitute
for meaningful song writing. Shh, nobody tell him. "I'm Ready" is worth singling
out for another reason. After its initial release,
the band tweeted out the song to a bunch of musicians,
including fellow creator of music and "Music," SIA. She sent the song to former
Columbia Records president, Steve Greenberg, who then
started co-managing the group. They also signed a deal
between Warner Bros Records and their own label, AJR Productions. So yeah, AJR were technically
an independent band with full creative
control over their output. They just also had their
marketing handled by one of the biggest labels in the world. A few years later, the group
put out their first album. βͺ Are you ready βͺ "Living Room," released in March, 2015, was recorded in AJR's living room. A very basic background
for a very basic album. Okay, we're starting off easy. "Living Room" is pretty meh. The songs here are less
pieces of music written to express a feeling had
by those who wrote it, and more demos to pitch to ad agencies for commercial placement. Most of the lyrics are your
typical fare about love, partying, and feeling good about yourself. The exceptions are the
most interesting, though. As one example, "Pitchfork
Kids" takes aim at the music communities that don't like it when you sample SpongeBob on your song. On the production end,
the trio go for hybrids of early 2010s pop and homages
to sixties and seventies singer-songwriters like Frankie
Valli and The Beach Boys. The songs are definitely
stronger when they lean towards the latter, like
"Growing Old on Bleecker Street" and the now unfortunately
named "Woody Allen." βͺ Now I'm feeling just like Woody Allen βͺ That did not age well at all. When they go towards the modern end is where the album really suffers. "Thirsty" lost 90% of my interest with the βͺ Thirsty, thirsty, thirsty βͺ And the other 10% went with the yodeling. "Big Idea" bases its hook around
unnecessary pitch shifting, and these weird pulsating
flanges in the chorus are more distracting than good. In total, "Living Room" is at its best when it's just three dudes sticking to tried and true songwriting
tropes, and at its worst when it tries to throw all of Pro Tools' processing power in your face. I wonder which direction
they'll lean towards on their next album. Vote now on your phones! After releasing their first album, the brothers Met were
off to study at college. Ryan and Jack began their
film degrees at Columbia, and Adam started his
PhD in human rights law at the University of Birmingham. They also left their deal
with Warner brothers, and from here on out,
their records would be distributed by BMG and Sony music. Oh, and at some point, Jack
apparently wore a bomber hat during a show and
everyone loved it so much that he began wearing it all the time. Which disproves my theory that he just really liked "Because The Internet." This period of transition
and coming of age was the major inspiration for
their second studio album, (sighs heavily) "The Click." Released in June 2017. You may already know this,
but "The Click" is considered in some circles to be
one of the worst albums of the past 10 years. Many of the biggest
videos on this very site about AJR spend their
runtimes dragging this album and the band through the mud. And I'll be honest with you, some of them are really fun to watch. - I've read season five "Glee"
fanfic with more engaging and fleshed out character
and dramatic stakes. - [Mic] Mark, if you ever watch this, I just want to thank you
for specifying season five. But "The Click" is pretty
much the definitive AJR album, in that you will love
the rest of the albums if you love this, and
you will despise the band if you hate this. So what do I think of it? (hums) It's at this point where we enter potentially hostile territory, so I'd like to make a few things clear. One, if you're watching this
and you're a fan of AJR, I want you to know that
none of my critiques or opinions about their music
are meant to be attacks on you or your relationship with their music. The discourse around this band and this album specifically
can be pretty loaded, and maybe it's just the
global pandemic talking, but I don't have the energy
in me to be mad about people liking music that I don't. Two, we'll soon be talking
about topics like depression and anxiety and how they're
depicted in AJR's music, and I want to be clear that
any critiques that I have are aimed at the depictions and not the actual members of AJR. I have nothing against these
guys and I do not want to inspire any kind of
harassment towards them. So let's start off with the positive. The strings! I'll discuss general
production in a hot sec, but I liked most of the
string arrangements on here. I'm always a sucker for
a good secondary dominant and "The Good Part" uses
one in its string section. The backbone of "Sober Up" is
this syncopated cello part, and it hooked me in quickly. Though that may also
be because I feel like I've heard it in a Verizon ad once. Also, the record's concept isn't terrible. "The Click" deals with trying
to weather the adult world while feeling very much like a kid. I think that's something all of us go through at some point in our lives, and we all find our own ways to navigate that kind of of internal crisis. Do we choose financial stability and sacrifice following
our passion, or vice versa? The boys sum up that conflict
on the opener and closer. βͺ Should I go for more clicks this year βͺ βͺ Or should I follow the click in my ear βͺ There are good ideas on here. In theory. In practice, the game you
play with "The Click" is "How long will it take for this given song to completely lose me?" Let's take "Overture" for an example. I really like this song for the first 50 seconds. "The Click" at the start is so on the nose that it is the nose, but
the piano sounds great, the vocal that they bring in from the final track sounds good, the trumpet interjecting is a nice touch. You're lulled into a sense
that this will be fun. And then it turns into a
90s hip hop EDM pastiche with virtually no heads up, and spends the rest of the runtime blazing through half-baked
versions of each song. But, you know, that's an
overture that incorporates all of the other songs. It can't help but be
a bit discombobulated. So let's play this game with other songs. I mentioned "The Good
Part" as a highlight, but it's held back by
an obnoxious vocal hook and unnecessary pitch-shifted counting. I do not like the key change in "Weak." βͺ But I'm weak βͺ It feels unearned, like the
song is taking me somewhere I never wanted to go. Why do the crowd vocals come in on the first chorus of "Sober Up?" I know that's a really
specific critique, but I feel like crowd vocals are meant
to encourage singing along. So why are AJR putting
them on the first chorus of a song that I've never heard? That's the weird thing
about this album sometimes. It equates more with better. It throws every musical
idea within the first minute of a song and then has to try to find ways to keep you interested for the rest of it. One of those ways is AJR singing hooks like they're pterodactyls. They'll definitely get stuck in your head, but in the worst way possible. Also, like on "Living Room," there are these random
pitch-shifting vocal breakdowns. The first time they appear, it's neat. By the fifth or sixth,
it's really annoying. Plus, the one song that
would actually benefit from some extra vocal
processing, "Call My Dad," doesn't have any outside
of some basic vocoding. I dunno, maybe that's just the
Bon Iver fan in me talking. And now allow the lyrics
fan in me to start talking. The lyrics on here have
glimmers of promise, but the execution runs
the gamut from generic to self-absorbed. I get that "No Grass Today" is about not forcing other people to live how you think they should, but on my first listen, it came across as, "I don't think weed is good,
but, like, you can smoke it. But, like, I don't think
it does anybody any good and it shouldn't be
something people turn to, and honestly, people can
get really addicted to it, and anybody who sells
it should go to jail, but, like, you do you." I like how "Turning Out" is
about realizing the process of growing up and falling
in love with someone is way messier than you
would think as a kid, but when your big climactic moment revolves around you screaming, βͺ I'm a little kid βͺ (groans disapprovingly) "Three Thirty" is a song about a song that's three minutes and 30 seconds. You know how in movies,
they'll call attention to plot contrivances and then move along as if acknowledging them fixes them being there in the first place? Anyway, the lowest point on here lyrically is "Netflix Trip." This one has the narrator looking back on major
events of their life... as viewed through a show they
were watching on Netflix. I get it, TV shows can make
a lasting impression on us, and Netflix is a huge part of our lives and media engagement, but
there is something so hokey about having this sweeping production, and a chorus about savoring every moment, and then dropping a line
about your grandpa dying while you were watching
season six of "The Office." Which, yes, they're
talking about "The Office" because of course they are. Again, I see the nuggets of
good ideas in these songs, but I am often put off by
their composition and lyrics. One of the most consistent
defenses I found for this album is that it's good music
to turn your brain off to. It sounds fun, it's upbeat, and for some people, that's enough. And maybe you want to tell me, or have already commented down below, that I shouldn't try to
overthink their music. If you're one of those
people, my response is, "Welcome to Mic The Snare,
subscribe if you're new." Overthinking music is
kind of what I do here. You don't have to agree with that, but that's just what I do. "The Click" is frankly fascinating. It's not good, but I also
think everyone should listen to it at least once
just because its flaws are so unique to this band. The album it reminds me of the most in how uniquely flawed it is
is Taylor Swift's "Reputation," and I'm not a fan of
that album, but I also started an entire YouTube
channel because of that album. Make of that what you will. "The Click," and its deluxe
edition with added songs, garnered AJR a lot more attention, in both good and less good ways. Hit singles, a lengthy
tour, tons of new fans, and tons of not fans. They also put out these clips of Ryan breaking down the production of the album, which is a trend they'll
continue for the next two albums. And to be real with
you, I like these a lot. I like when artists peel
back their session files and show the inspiration and process for coming up with songs. These videos specifically also show that these guys do have musical chops, which makes it all the more disappointing when they pair these
compositions with lyrics like, βͺ I'm a little kid βͺ Anyway, after touring for "The Click," the trio continued going to school, gathering inspiration for the next album, "Neotheater," released in April, 2019. This one is framed as
a coming-of-age tale, which is what I thought
"The Click" was, but okay. So let's start off
again with the positive. This one's better than "The Click." The lows on this album are not as plenty or as deep as "The Click's" lows were. In fact, once again, the
opener, "Next Up Forever," shows a good deal of promise. These Disney-style
harmonies, the kind of beat that screams "Second Line for Friday on the Coachella Poster" vibes, lyrics about not wanting
to move on that are - βͺ Kinda wish I was still a virgin βͺ βͺ Time to finally see what sex is like βͺ Not great, but an improvement, I guess. I also like how, on some songs,
they incorporate elements from other songs on the
album, and even past songs. The overture on "The
Click" was a cool idea, but it also felt like a
flimsy way to set up a story when the album could just... tell a story. On "Neotheater," they
call back to "I'm Ready" on the opener, "Turning
Out" gets a part two, and they bring back the hook
from "100 Bad Days" on "Karma." That said, just like with "The Click," I reach a point where I can't
really defend these songs, and it's around the time they sing a song about moving away from home called "Don't Throw Out My Legos." I like how "Birthday Party"
tries to go for a mini-story with the narrator being born and trying to keep a sense
of innocence as they grow up. I do not like these vocal samples from David Lynch's "Eraserhead," though. βͺ 'Gon be stepping in time βͺ - What the hell? - [Mic] I am honestly baffled
at how they thought it would be a thing people would want to listen to. "Beats" is, in concept,
about the bands trepidation over accepting sponsorships from companies like Beats by Dre, and in execution, it comes off as an attempt
to promote Beats by Dre through reverse psychology. I've warmed up to "100 bad days" since I first listened to it, but I am not a fan of the
"dah-dah-dah-dah-dahs," and I especially don't
like the syncopated horns in the last minute. Also, I get the song's message is about difficult life experiences making you a more enriched person, but
the way they phrase that... βͺ A hundred bad days made
a hundred good stories βͺ βͺ A hundred good stories make
me interesting at parties βͺ Comes off as really self-absorbed. Speaking of which, "Dear
Winter" is an intimate ode to the narrator's future
daughter with nice guitar work offsetting a hook that is,
once again, nasally as heck. But when you start looking at
the lyrics, it starts reading like this guy doesn't realize
that he'll be parenting this kid with another
person, who likely would have their own input into naming
and raising said kid. I doubt that was their intent, but still, it comes off as questionable. Overall, "Neotheater" is
better than "The Click," but its lows aren't as interesting and its highs aren't as memorable. "Neotheater" was the band's
best performing album to date and spawned more big hits for the trio. AJR toured "Neotheater" for most of 2019, with news late that year
announcing a second leg of the tour starting in spring 2020. They even put out a new song
in February 2020 called "Bang" to help get people excited for the tour. This is great! Nothing will go wrong! (electricity zapping) (sings sad theme) - Will you cut that out? - [Mic] So I don't know
if any of you remember, but a thing happened last year, and like every other touring act, AJR were grounded for 2020. They did videos showing
their Pro Tools sessions for some songs, which, again,
is a cool thing that I like. They did some drive-in concerts that were all the rage last year,
and some virtual events, not to mention that song
they put out in February was kind of blowing up. "Bet the next album they make
will be called 'Metronome.' Remember this comment." Creezy, I'm so sorry. After a few more singles, they released their fourth
studio album, "OK Orchestra," released just two weeks
ago in March, 2021. Also, side note, is it
weird that we've gotten two records this year with
titles inspired by OK Computer? The trio has said before
that Broadway musicals were a big source of
inspiration for their music, and "OK Orchestra" wears
that inspiration the most out of any AJR album yet. On one hand, it's a look
that can suit AJR well. Tracks like "World's Smallest Violin," and "3 O'Clock Things"
don't reinvent the wheel, but they were catchy and
pleasant to listen to. And you know what? That one line in "3 O'Clock"
about doing YouTube? I didn't mind it. Though wait, if he did YouTube as a job, why would have to watch ads? That's something that
someone viewing them does, not someone... Sorry, sorry, I'm getting distracted. At the same time, learning about
their Broadway inspirations made me realize, the
worst AJR tracks exude a theater-kid tryhard mentality
in their production. And hey, that's not a diss. I was a theater kid in middle
and high school, I get it! But sometimes, I wish they
would just take one musical idea and develop it instead
of throwing 10 in at once and calling it a day. "Joe" tackles childhood idol worship with these cloying vocal
samples that sound like they were ripped straight from Sibelius. "The Trick," with its
sweeping string work, would be one of my favorite tracks if this Tiny Tim filter
wasn't on most of the vocals. The "duh-duh-duhs" on
"Bummerland" are sung and layered so heavy that they kill any momentum the song might have for me. But once again, there are still
promising moments on here. One of the singles, "My
Play," focuses on the fallout of a divorce, which might be one of the best topics they've tackled yet. Divorces are often messy processes, and they can skew a young
kid's perception of love and basic human connection
beyond recognition. Plus, I like the instrumentation
and overall buildup on this one, but still,
the band can't escape writing lyrics as if
they're kids, and any depth or insight that could have
been mined just isn't there. Which begs the question, "When are these guys gonna grow up?" As of this video, AJR are in
their mid to late twenties, two of them are older than
me, and yet the past three records have all been slight
variations on the same topics, feeling like a kid, hesitancy
to grow up and fall in love, clinging onto the past. "OK Orchestra" does take
steps away from that focus, but at this rate, it'll be
another, like, five albums before they stop singing about childhood. And by then, they'll be
30-somethings singing about avocado toast and "here come dat boi." The one song that makes the
biggest shift in subject matter is the aforementioned "Bang." And it's such a weird nothing of a song. If we hadn't been living
in hell world 2020, I don't think this would
have been as big of a hit. I like parts of the song. I like the piano at the start, I like how they got the guy
who does the New York City subway messages to do the "Here We Go's." There is clearly a lot
of thought put into this theatrical trap production, but for what? What does going out with
a bang in this song mean? The rest of the song is talking about begrudgingly accepting
adult responsibilities, so is this supposed to be sarcastic, or is it like one last big party? 'Cause I don't feel like
partying to this song. And the way they describe
adult responsibilities is so generic and stereotypical. βͺ Feel like I'm gonna puke
cause my taxes are due βͺ βͺ Do my password begin
with a one or a two βͺ It comes off as if they've
never actually had to deal with anything they're talking about. That might be the crux of my
mixed feelings with the band. I often feel like I'm being sold my own millennial experience back to me. As if a giant marketing firm
researched all the various aspects of millennial
life and got three guys who never had to deal with any of it to write songs about it. If the market wants a version
of 21 Pilots or Jon Bellion with a hardy affliction
of arrested development, then the market can have it. But these songs throw such a wide net hoping to catch as many
listeners as possible, and the result is that very little of it feels genuine to me. That could change
someday, and OK Orchestra is their best album yet, but that's not a glowing recommendation, it's a half-hearted acceptance. βͺ While you're watching my play βͺ (scatting) Considering that "OK
Orchestra" is two weeks old as of this video, there haven't been any major new developments. I'm sure the Met brothers are
planning for their next tour, writing more songs,
continuing their education. Ryan and Jack have mentioned a TV pilot they've been writing, so
I guess we'll see if that comes to fruition. So, AJR. I don't hate them. This was my first listen
for all of these records, and I wanted to give them all a fair shake and form my own opinion on them. And I think I get their appeal, they have musical talent to be sure, and the topics they explore,
about being a millennial and trying to find your
place in the world, are worth exploring. But more often than not,
the execution is just.. Let's just say it's not for
me and leave it at that. But I'm still glad I did this. I think it's worthwhile
sometimes to explore music that you may have dismissed in
the past and see for yourself if you like it, or don't like it. If you enjoy their music,
or if it's helped you, especially in the past year, I'm glad you got more
out of it than I did. And if you want to get into AJR, check out the most recent album. And "The Click," too, but
more as a litmus test. And if you have a favorite
AJR song or album, or related thing, I would
love to know what it is in the comments. Again, the poll for next month's
dive is in the description, so please go vote in
that if you want a say on who gets covered next month, and be sure to check out
the Spotify playlist. Thanks for watching.
Holy shit the madman did it
what a brave man, never forget
Mic a real one for this.
how brave βΊοΈ