WHAT ABOUT THE COMEBACK ALBUM?

As you're probably well aware (or if you're not, now you know), Underoath are releasing their eighth studio album Erase Me tomorrow, and it will be the band's first release since their breakup in 2013, since 2010's hugely underrated Disambiguation, and the first with original member and drummer Aaron Gillespie since 2008's towering Lost In The Sound Of Separation. If you've read this blog before then you'll know that I am a huge Underoath fan and have probably guessed that I am hugely excited to get my hands on a copy of Erase Me tomorrow. 

There is, however, an issue. The comeback album. Notoriously difficult, commonly disappointing, often nothing more than a filthy cash grab. There have been so many comeback albums in music history that have been so sorely disappointing or undercooked that fans have wished that they were never even made in the first place. There are, however, a number of comeback albums that have been the outlier, that have actually improved upon previous releases and added overall quality to the band's discography. Why are so many comeback albums destined for the bargain bin? Perhaps there's actually a reason bands break up? Let's dive deeper and find out, shall we?

One recent comeback album that I actually loved was that of Quicksand last year in the excellent Interiors. Quicksand were somewhat of an anomaly, active intermittently throughout the 1990s and pioneering what would later be called post-hardcore with bands like Helmet and Fugazi, before disbanding with two LPs - Slip and Manic Compression - rounding out their sparse but hugely influential discography. They were never a money making machine, and it doesn't seem to me that there would have been a whole lot of interest in a new Quicksand album in the 21st century. But they reformed and now we have Interiors, and album that definitely sound like Quicksand but feels no need to simply retread what they did in the 90s. It actually sound like a Quicksand album made in 2017, and that alone is cause for praise, the fact that it kicks ass aside. Quicksand had something worthwhile to add to their collection of songs (which would have, by the way, been fine at its previous capacity) and did so in a way that was true to their voice and pushed their artistic vision forwards into fresh and interesting places. Cosmonauts is bloody fantastic, too. 

Let's look at the middle ground, in an album that I really wanted to love and almost convinced myself that I did for a while - the second American Football LP from 2016. Don't get me wrong, it's not bad. But everything that made the lone LP from American Football so captivating and moody was entirely vacant from LP2 - it was crisp, perfect sounding, no longer unique and kind of boring, to be honest. As an alternative/emo album it was fine, but as an American Football album, well... I feel like we could have got the exact same thing in the form of another Owen album. It's impossible to know exactly what the intentions and process of the band was, but one does wonder what the intentions behind LP2 were. It's an example of a comeback album being objectively okay but not living up to the lofty heights of expectations tied to the brand. 

Then, of course, there are plenty of glorified coasters that have been sold as albums when in reality they are not much more than money grabs. Let's list some off, shall we (and don't get too butt-hurt if I name anything you dig)? Now by Shania Twain, Chinese Democracy by Guns n Roses, Sonic Boom by KISS, Revival by Eminem, Stampede of the Disco Elephants by Limp Bizkit, Billy Idol's Devil's Playground... the list goes on. Without going into the grisly details (they're pretty self evident if you put any of these on with prior knowledge of the artists) these are the comebacks that we really didn't need. 

So should I be excited for a new Underoath album? Judging from the overall hit rate comeback albums seen to garner a cynical listener would have to say no. However, it has been proven by bands like Quicksand that with the right attitude, the right timing and the right passion comeback albums can not only be good but be the Blade Runner 2049 to their Blade Runner. And without looking ahead too far and getting ahead of myself, if anyone has the ability to make a good comeback album it's Underoath. With a combination of the comments they have made in the media recently regarding the new album, the insights in the the album process on social media they have been posting and me trying as hard as humanly possible to dispel all expectations, they might just do it. Fingers crossed they bring in the goods tomorrow morning and we have something to smack our lips over. With any luck Underoath are about to show us all how a comeback album is done, and if it falls flat then at least we can say that there has been more than enough precedent for that.

Do you have any favourite comeback albums? Are there any absolute stinkers that I missed? Are there any (including Underoath) that you are particularly looking forward to? Let me know in the comments, I'd love to hear from you.