CJAM Album Review: Afterglow

Written by Aiden Russell (CJAM Staff)

The Bunny The Bear’s latest album, Afterglow, makes no attempt to fit a specific mold, making it even more amazing. Unlike previous releases, Afterglow focuses on its EDM pop influences first. The rock elements function more as textures rather than being the driving forces of the songs.The result is something that might have disappointed a few fans for not being heavy enough, but I feel this combination leads to their best sounding album to date.

Futures starts off with a guitar based beat. Metal guitars feature in the song, but they’re there to fill space while synths and lofi drums create the main piece. This is a solid opener with the only real weak part being the repetitiveness of the chorus. Then again, that might be why the song only has two choruses. Also, it’s worth mentioning that Jake Reeves is a phenomenal singer and the chorus doesn’t really showcase his abilities.

Tell theTruth leans a little more into being a rock song, featuring guitars that lead the song and actual drums. The drum line in verse one is cool, then it gets a little more generic, but functional as it moves on. Jake Reeves and Matthew Tybor are both great vocally. Matt’s use of a scream rap voice during verse three is pretty fun and I wish it went on for a little longer. When I first heard this song, I was very confused by the decision to just go into a groove before the ending. No vocals, just instruments repeating their lines. After several listens, I really like that part as there aren’t a lot of songs that just give the listener breathing room in this way. I really like this one.

At the Top is phenomenal – the guitar textures work great on the beat and Jake really shows off his vocal talents here. This song goes in a Future Bass direction with the powerful synths. Matt functions as more of a backup screamer here, but his harsh vocals add a nice contrast to Jake’s. I also like the ending where Matt gets a solo section. His harsh vocals are pitched up making him sound like a little kid.

Burn was the song that I was most excited to hear in full. It lived up to my expectations. Jake sounds really good on this track, and I love the attempt at doing a slow-song ballad. I also like getting to hear Matt attempt some more clean singing – he’s pretty good at it but doesn’t do it too often on The Bunny The Bear songs. The disappointment for me was that before the song was released, there was a version they had online where the chorus was instrumental, which I thought was a cool choice. When the album version dropped, the vocals followed the instrumentals almost exactly, which I thought was a little bit of a downgrade.

Pray is one of the album’s weaker parts. I like the drumline in the chorus and Jake’s singing is great as always, but this song doesn’t do it for me in the way that the others do. I think my issue is that the verses don’t have a lot going on, and I don’t like the lyrics that much. It’s well put together and while some people might really like this one, but I’m not that much of a fan.

Visions is a fun one. Matt and Jake shift back into future bass/pop style tracks here. The song has an interesting dynamic being mainly high energy, then dives to be soft and piano-laden during the pre chorus. The soft parts compliment the loud ones well, as do the screams and sung vocals.

Home is a catchy number. Vocals are both catchy and heavy once again. Jake gets a nice opening verse. The song continues the album’s signature style of using noisy guitars as a texture while it’s the pop elements that drive the song. Matt makes use of his scream rapping once again on this track. It always astounds me how he can go as heavy as he does on songs where it shouldn’t work. His voice is heavy, yet it hits just right against the beat.

Let Go is the strangest track to me in terms of how it was put together. It’s very much a rock song first, but the drums are chopped and spliced during the build to the chorus rather than played. I suppose it’s more synth rock in nature. I’d have liked to hear a little more of Matt in this song, but Jake still carries it pretty well. I find the chopping of the drums an odd choice, but the drums really do drive the song forward, both when played and edited.

The best part of For You is the ending. Not because it’s a bad song, but I really like that heavy ending synth line. Aside from that, the piano line that leads the song sounds great. The chorus then hits and it has some nice, moving energy to it. For You has similar builds to Pray, but they are executed way better here. The verse and chorus have a much bigger dynamic shift, making For You much more dramatic and memorable.

All I Know is the de facto worst track on the album. It’s not a terrible listen, but it’s a simple pop trap number that I wouldn’t be very much into if not for Jake Reeves. And even then, his angelic voice isn’t quite enough to save this one from feeling weak.

I rate Afterglow an 8/10 overall. The ambition here is obvious, and it feels great when it reaches its peak. Unfortunately, there are a few spots that didn’t really work for me. But, there’s so much variety in the tracks that a listener’s personal high points and weak spots will vary. Everyone will likely have a definite least favorite track or two alongside the one or two that floor them.