Repetition in rock.

On the 29th of August, The Hives released their album The Hives Forever Forever The Hives, following their 2023 album, The Death Of Randy Fitzsimmons. The Swedish garage rock band, formed in 1993, will tour their new album this year.

The album opens up with an introduction that sounds like the warming up of an orchestra. “Enough Is Enough” introduces the rest of an album that is suited for a mosh pit with an easy-to-follow vocal line and lyrics that are catchy. “Hooray Hooray Hooray” is an upbeat track with a tempo that suits the name of the song. This track also contains repeating lyrics that will get listeners singing along. This use of lyrical repetition on each track continues throughout the rest of the album.

“Bad Call” adds a touch of synthesizers, but the vocals on this one struggle a bit – the drums do make up for it, however. “Paint A Picture” has vocals that are a lot stronger than the previous track. The chorus slows down rather than speeds up, which does make the pacing of the song a tad awkward. Although, “O.C.D.O.D” is even more fast-paced than the previous tracks. The drum hits seen in this one are a staple of the album, allowing the tracks to stay grounded, but the lyrics are harder to sing along to because the chorus’s words are cramped. “Legalize Living” allows the bass to take the lead and adds more synthesizers, which is a nice feature to an album that relies heavily on the drums and vocals. After this, there is a brief interlude that goes right into “Roll Out The Red Carpet,” which is a fun and danceable track, but nothing too special. “Born A Rebel” is an almost surf rock song in terms of its instrumentation, but the lyrics on this track (along with the rest of the album) do lack substance.

“They Can’t Hear The Music” has a bright and clear guitar line that hasn’t been heard on the rest of the album, and while the guitar line itself isn’t too interesting, the tone makes up for it. “Path Of Most Resistance” adds a lot of reverb to the guitar, which makes for a nice contrast to the guitar tone from the track before. The synths are back again, and the vocals are a lot clearer, making this possibly the best track on the album. The album finishes with “The Hives Forever Forever The Hives.” This track is a lot more based on an electronic sound compared to the rest of the album, making listeners crave more of this sound.

The Hives have cooked up a cohesive and easy-to-follow album. The choruses all contain repeated lyrics that listeners can sing along to, and their instrumental lines are just as catchy. With that being said, the lyrics could contain a little more substance, and the group could have explored more with their sound.