The phenomenally successful McBusted, a combination of two of Britain’s biggest bands, McFly and Busted, have released a self-titled album fresh after forming no longer than a year ago. A return of the pop rock genre is a welcomed change, as is seeing the six boys unite in friendship and musical harmony.
The album opens with “Air Guitar.” The instant pop rock sound is heard within the first few seconds of the song. The song builds to a climax of the pop-sounding chorus. Repetitive and catchy, it’s certainly a song I’d have stuck in my head for days afterwards. Guitar riffs and drumbeats are heard throughout the song, referencing the rock sound, but the chorus sounds too pop to be considered full rock.
The second track, “Hate Your Guts,” begins with drumsticks hitting against each other, like rockers do as they countdown. It sounds like a merge of Blink-182, Bowling For Soup, and The Darkness. A very rock-sounding song, I’d say the lyrics were weak but surprisingly catchy.
The third track, “What Happened To Your Band,” has a slow start with a rock sound, featuring drumbeats and guitar riffs. It takes a while for the lyrics to start. During the verse, it still remains somewhat slow. During the chorus however, the pace picks up and the lyrics become loud. I absolutely love the guitar in this song. It’s done very well. The song ends with a slow piano, with the common repeating of the lyrics to fade out the song, which sounds better than if it’d ended suddenly.
The fourth track, “Get Over It,” has a pop sound straight away, with an almost dance tone to it. I feel like it could be a great summer song, especially with the repetitive chorus and the beat behind the song. It could be a great break up song too, almost like a ‘f*** you’ to a partner.
The fifth track, “Riding On My Bike,” is literally robotic singing and the lyrics start with no instruments in the background. It takes at least thirty seconds for a drumbeat to start, with loud lyrics being sung. The beat sounds like an old-school computer. The chorus isn’t as impressive or as good as the verses. Unfortunately, one of their weaker songs, but every album has to have one.
The sixth track, “Gone,” begins with the guitar riffs and drumbeats once more. The lyrics in the verse match the beat, which is cleverly done. The chorus picks up and becomes more powerful and climatic, showcasing the range of vocals within the band. The song’s only weak point is how suddenly it ends. Otherwise it’s a great song.
The seventh track, “Sensitive Guy,” has simple and humorous lyrics in the verse with the chorus sounding just as simple. It’s ironic how they chose such a rock sound, considering the lyrics are about a sensitive guy. I think they overuse the word ‘cry’ too many times but I do enjoy the humour laced through the lyrics. It makes it more light-hearted, considering the background sound.
The eighth track, “Beautiful Girls Are the Loneliest,” is a soft gentle strumming in the background, sounding melancholic with equally soft lyrics and causing me to relax. A ballad is nice to have on a mainly rock-pop album. The violins play in the background, adding to this romantic, relaxing sound.
The ninth track, “Before You Knew Me,” starts with lyrics and rock guitar within seconds of the song. The verse leads to a climatic chorus, which becomes rock very quickly. I prefer the verse to the chorus because I feel like it’s too angry rock. The verse and the bridge don’t go with the chorus at all. They sound too different to be the same song. The lyrics aren’t bad, but it’s essentially comparisons thrown into a song.
The tenth track, “Back In Time,” is once more a rock track, but more on the pop-rock side. The lyrics sound fast before building to the chorus. The chorus slows down before speeding up again, complimenting the verse beats perfectly. It has a repetitive ending, reflecting the rest of the catchy album very well.
The eleventh track, “How’s My Hair?”, begins slowly, with equally slow lyrics. It sounds slightly morbid. The chorus becomes more rock, but the lyrics remain morbid. It sounds like a gloomy ballad about a boy trying to impress a girl by fretting about his hair.
The twelfth track, “Getting It Out,” is yet another rock beat, building to yet another climax. It sounds very cheeky and punk rock, which suits their personalities. It’s another catchy song that will remain in my head for days afterwards. A guitar solo emerges halfway through the song, reflecting typical rock. It ends just as suddenly, with a final drumbeat.
The thirteenth track, “23:59,” begins very quickly, with the beat coming afterwards. The lyrics are reminiscent of pop songs, with the repetitive words. The beat is pop again, sounding once more like a dance song. I could imagine listening to this in a house party over a club, or dancing alone in my room. It has interesting lyrics too.
The fourteenth track, “In Da Club,” starts with voices announcing a party, telling us this will be a party song. However, it quickly contrasts the lyrics and the beat to what you’re led to believe the song will be about. It has repetitive lyrics, but with a rock beat. It sounds weird together, yet it works. I like how it’s relatable to the clubbing experience; especially at a certain age where it loses it’s appeal. The only downside is it does get a bit too repetitive after a while.
The final track, “I See Red,” has a decent drumbeat followed by good lyrics. The chorus doesn’t fit with the verses again. It seems to slow down or become more rock when the verse is downplayed, which is a bad contrast to have. The lyrics aren’t particularly good either. The beat is the song’s redeeming quality, in my opinion.
Overall, McBusted has a fair mix on the album, giving us a flavour of the range of sounds they can produce together. Despite some of the poorer songs, the album overall is very good. If it doesn’t go high up in the charts, I shall be disappointed.