This album was released on May 10^th, 2019 on Polyvinyl Records.

The Get Up Kids were responsible for a big part of the third wave emo movement, even going as far as disassociating themselves from the term and changing their style to a more alternative rock approach. After breaking up and getting back together, then releasing an album and disappearing again for six years, the extended play Kicker served as a fresh start for the group. Then, “Satellite” was released, the album hype came back, and everybody who grew up watching the band open for Green Day and still has Bleed American on repeat daily wanted to see if they could keep their spot at the top of the emo throne. The hype was somewhat justified, as the veterans put out yet another record that has bouncy pop-punk anthems, alternative-influenced deep cuts, and an overarching, youthful sound that screams “we aren’t done just yet”, although some elements of the album show that the band didn’t want to take the risks of revisiting their older work.

As pointed out before, the album is the first album in eight years released by the band, so there was a skepticism as to how new material would sound (There Are Rules was a departure from the emo style that the band used to play). The acoustic strumming guitar at the beginning of “Satellite” is just a pretense for what’s to come, as the song explodes into a pop-punk frenzy that is an instant portal back to the late 90’s wave of music that dominated the scene. That same influence is echoed in “Lou Barlow”, where the lyrics pertaining to relationship concerns clash with the earworm riffs that play out through the course of the song. Matt Pryor’s signature vocals continue to shine on songs like “Salina” and “Common Ground”, where the alternative rock instrumentals (think mid-career Cage the Elephant or Black Keys) are able to take a backseat to his more downcast vocals. Pryor stays comfortably in his range and croons his trademark nasally vocals for the majority of the album and it works out well for the dynamic of Problems.

Instrumentally, the album has just enough variety to get by on a listen without too much dragging by. The album straddles between classic pop-punk and alternative rock for the first half, and the signature emo influence that The Get Up Kids are known for takes shape in the silence, especially in “Fairweather Friends” and “Symphony of Silence”. Unfortunately, the energetic first half of the album is miles ahead of the second half when it comes to overall difference in instrumentation, as the sequence from “The Advocate” to “Brakelines” blends together. “Your Ghost Is Gone” is a great album closer in that it breaks the spell of the monotonous tone that the album took in the second half.

Long story short, The Get Up Kids have tried writing music in three different eras. They revolutionized an entire genre in the first era, departed from said genre in the second one, and maintained relevancy in the third with Problems. The album isn’t perfect; it’s far from it. Despite this record not holding up to the classics like Four Minute Mile and Something to Write Home About, it has perks that will keep listeners coming back for the singles, and maybe some deep cuts like “Now or Never” and “Common Ground” every now and then.

Rating: 6/10

Favorite Songs: “Satellite”, “The Advocate”, “Your Ghost Is Gone”