NEW RELEASE: Love Sux - Avril Lavigne

I have grown up with many artists, Avril Lavigne happens to be one of them. Under My Skin is still a never forgotten regular rotation of mine. I will always have a soft spot for her music, but Head Above Water was not it. The singles to this album have thus far been subpar to me. My hopes for this "return to form" felt a bit small, so now that it is here, let us ride this wave together.

The album begins with "Cannonball", which is a mix of a punk sound and a bit of the Hello Kitty electronic sounds. Together it is chaotic, and also the lyrics are...not doing it for me.

How is Machine Gun Kelly now the face of pop/punk as a move? Like how did he get on an Avril Lavigne track? I will set this aside. It is not a terrible track, "Bois Lie", but the chorus says nothing and at parts she is trying to shove words into a melody that doesn't work. 

"Bite Me" I never imagined would sound stronger in comparison to the first two songs, as it seemed weak for a single. This is making me a bit disappointed. Maybe the album will get better as it goes. 

"Love It When You Hate Me" includes every new pop/punks favorite 3rd verse rapper in Blackbear, and the melody sounds messy on her. It sounds more like something he would do. How is Avril allowing herself to be upstaged?

"Love Sux" is making me feel the main problem with this album. Rather than standing on her own, she has chosen to...take the styles of the new pop/punk artists who have been inspired by her. This is madness. She can do better than this. She has done better than this. 

I suppose if you ever wanted an entire album of B-side subpar versions of songs like "I Can Do Better" then Love Sux will be appealing. That is just what "Kiss Me Like the World is Ending" is making me think. None of these songs are particularly standing out. 

Finally! Something with potential. Avril does do ballads quite well. "Avalanche" is a breath of fresh air in a heap of garbage. I never imagined I would say this about an Avril album in general. It isn't an "Innocence" or "Keep Holding On" but it is better than the rest of the album.

"Deja Vu" is better, but still is lacking. The lyricism of this album is something I'd expect from a par debut album of most artists. I am disappointed hearing it from a seasoned veteran.

And...now Avril sounds like...early...Paramore? This somehow fits better than other things on the album. F.U. is probably the best upbeat song on this album. I will take this reluctantly. 

"All I Wanted" features Mark Hoppus, but no one could really save this song from being a subpar generic track.

"Dare to Love Me" is the best song in this mess. An emotional ballad speaking to love in a genuine way. This is the Avril I am used to. Not...whatever else this has been.

The album closes with a song reminding me I actually don't like this album with "Break of a Heartache". 

Lyrics: 3/10 - The lyrical prowess, or complete lack of it, destroyed the potential of this album. The on the nose ones are not her style at all. Most of the lyrics sound like a teeny bopper wrote them in their angry journal. And listen, I like angry teeny bopper as much as the next person, but honestly I've heard better from a subpar angry teeny bopper.

Music: 5/10 - Nothing particularly stand out, nothing particularly new for the genre or bending a mold. Just average.

Overall: 3/10 - I am truly grateful I didn't waste money pre-ordering this. Absolutely gutted as a huge fan. I don't know if she's run out of ideas or she is afraid of losing popularity. This was not it. This is not a return to pop/punk form at all. Every single thing she has done prior to this is better than literally every song on this album. Hold on to the good stuff and wait for her to get back on the tracks.