The follow-up to 2018's
So Far So Good So Cool,
Heavy Male Insecurity is the Norwegian punk outfit's sixth and most satisfying effort to date. Commencing with a short burst of tinnitus-inducing feedback that quickly resolves into a two-and-a-half-minute blast of early-'90s melodic punk à la
Flop and
Bad Religion, "Modern Man" elicits notes of burnt sugar, summer sweat, and stale cigarette smoke. Aptly named, the taut, ten-track set addresses toxic masculinity ("I wanna get big, fu#k yeah!") and male wokeness ("He enjoys baking and doesn't eat meat every day/When his heart is aching he'll put it on display") with equal parts snark and sincerity. Social commentary aside,
Heavy Male Insecurity's first and foremost mission is to rock your face off, which it does with extreme prejudice. The band's knack for pairing buzzsaw leads and crushing pick slides with arena-sized '70s power pop melodies is on full display. Standout cuts like "White Lies," "All Pain, No Gain," and "Not Like the Others" are as unrelenting as they are crawling with earworms, and the production is both punchy and grand, like
Pup taking a stab at
Badfinger's "No Matter What."
Death by Unga Bunga have been honing their particular brand of hi-fidelity garage punk since the mid-2000s now, and while previous outings have hinted at greatness, the confectionary and streamlined
Heavy Male Insecurity -- which clocks in at just over 30 minutes -- is about as close to all-killer-no-filler as it gets. ~ James Christopher Monger