Bad Suns, Great Songs

Wow. Bad Suns’ new album Mystic Truth is ten grade-A tracks spanning several influences. Not every moment is exciting, but surely no moment is dull. Almost all identical in length, each track is similar enough to understandably be grouped together in an album, yet different enough so they don’t all sound like variations of each other.

Track two, “One Magic Moment,” feels like Counting Crows, and its predecessor has frontman Christo Bowman sounding almost like Jackson Browne. Later he channels some early Weezer (pre-cover album days, phew), and almost sounds like he’s nodding to Blink-182 in the latter half’s “Separate Seas.”

Among all these easily-playable songs, “Hold Your Fire” reigns king. The post-chorus–“I’m not at the end of my rope / the contrary”–makes the heart melt. These guys have encountered emotions more profound than the average him or her, and they’re able to show it! Flex when you can, and flex they do. This will be most folks’ highlight as the album nonchalantly rolls together on repeat. The kind of song that needs to be given attention from start to finish, rewinding if people talk over it. And boy oh boy is it catchy; it’ll stay stuck ’til the end of the rope.

Comparable vocal lines appear in “Starjumper.” The album’s closer is a melancholy note left to a lover, a reflection on what was and a prediction of what is soon to be. Bowman’s vocal prowess shines most here and in “Howling at the Sun.” The latter boasts his falsetto right before the title is sung.

“Love By Mistake” sounds inspired by Sublime, though that wouldn’t be obvious from its intro. The celeste brings to mind a lullaby, bedtime, babies, not California beaches. But once the tune sets in, so do the seafoam and sunshine. Pensive and regretful, “Darkness Arrives (And Departs)” waltzes in next, telling us that life is about growth, moving forward and the prices we all have to pay. “The future is in only our hands,” a repeated line that, for the most part, captures what most of these songs talk about, as well as other concepts (nostalgia, spontaneity, loneliness). It’s the only track not in four, and this 6/8 gem has lyrics showcasing the titular darkness, “These pictures are all that I got,” and the often-disguised light, “Tomorrow looks different, then you’re in it.”

A song with strong lyrics is already a force to be reckoned with, functioning as time machines, master painters, a second set of eyes. But the same song becomes even mightier when it heals its listeners, gets them through their own tough time or finally helps them see an issue from a different side. It’s hard to forecast how many songs from Mystic Truth will accomplish this feat, but it’s likely to be a lot. Bad Suns draws an appropriate amount of inspiration from other bands while hitting all the marks for quality songwriting. There is something in this album for almost everyone, so give it a listen and come closer to the Truth.