Modern Baseball are getting heavier with age. It’s just a one-off, but if “The Thrash Principle” is any indication of what their next album will sound like, it’s yet another new direction for the young band. Where most of the tracks on Sports and You’re Gonna Miss It All bounced, this one drags its feet. The band has always been good at balancing dark thoughts with a bit of levity, but they seem to have reached a tipping point, and this is the first time they feel really weighed down. Years of heartbreak and rejection have taken their toll, and relationships start to blur together like memories you’d rather forget. Brandon Lukens’ always sharp lyricism twists and turns dynamically, as he subtly corrects himself as he goes along: “Didn’t watch your ex’s set,” oh, wait, no, “couldn’t watch your ex’s set.” “And I’ve known you forever…” Or is it “yet I’ve loved you forever”? “You suggested I write a song about the first time we met, but I can’t seem to remember…” shit, nope, “I don’t wanna remember there or then.” All of these shifting thoughts provide ammunition for the kicker: “So is this the hook you wanted? Is it stuck inside your head? Can you sing it with your friends, or alone?” The final twist of the lyrical knife leaves the narrator rejected and alone,
The Fat Angel Sings 