AUSTIN – Post Malone/Mini Assignment #2

Hey everyone! It’s your friendly neighbourhood Spiderman swinging by to make a special appearance on Mirrorball Melodies to provide my exquisite music taste. Being raised in New York City, I have a broad palette of music ranging from rap/hip hop to soul to Latin; there’s a bit of everything! So, today, we are going to be reviewing the album AUSTIN by Post Malone. He is a native of New York state, so I’m betting this has to be good. The album was released just this year, falling under the indie pop and alternative rock genres.  

The first track, “Don’t Understand,” displays Malone’s signature raspy voice with a laid-back flow. He carries a consistent guitar strum and pick pattern throughout the entire song while also weaving in some strings near the mid-to ending of the song. The reflective and questioning lyrics about those around him make you really think and want to swing around the city, reflecting on your own ups and downs. The lyrics heavily focus on life and how, sometimes, you just don’t understand life. Fighting villains all the time and saving the civilians of New York holds a lot of responsibility, so I can really relate to it. As for the production, it is AMAZING. He knows how to blend and time the instruments with the lyrics, presenting a crazy good sound. Malone captures the troubles we all carry in our minds 24/7 and the overall human experience within this song! 

“Something Real” switches up the vibe completely from “Don’t Understand”. It is cumbersome on the drums, guitar, rock, esc vibes. I found that it is a great song to listen to as I’m swinging throughout the city, going to another location to fight off the next villain. As he mixes the rock sound, Malone pairs it with a slow rap and singing flow. As for the lyrics, wow, they are touching on something that I can relate to extremely! Malone sings about how he longs for “something real,” something authentic in life, “Give me somethin’, somethin’ real / I would trade it all just to be at peace. As I am in the role of Spiderman and also need to be Miles Morales, it becomes difficult for me as well to juggle the attention. 

The next spidey-sense tingling track is actually the lead single, “Chemical.” Post opens the song with him strumming the guitar, which might I add that he is playing the majority of the guitar throughout the whole album, mixing his hip-hop and pop roots. The melody will catch your attention like a web right from the opening beat. Switching over to the lyrics, “Chemical” delves into the desires and the toxicness that can come from such an intense love. He can paint the image that love is as powerful as a chemical reaction. Personally, I haven’t really experienced something as strong as that yet, but I have hope. The only chemical reaction that I can relate to is the one my body had when I got bit by a spider. 

“Sign Me Up” makes you believe it could be an upbeat, fun track, but the real meaning hides between the lyrics. Throughout this song, he carries an alternative rock style of production with heavy drums and guitar. Throughout the song, Malone sings how he doesn’t care about all of the “red flags” and bad things that are found in the partner he has met, “For love, you gotta suffer / I’m getting pretty good at doing what I’m told.” Post Malone chooses to disregard the dangers that are coming from the relationship. Still, the single dealbreaker is when she tries to take away his liquor, “But I knew the party was over / When she tried to take my alcohol,” he sings. It is a moment of reflection, the underlying theme found through the album as a whole. 

The final song on a personal Spidey favourite album is “Laugh It Off”! He encapsulates the album’s essence with a slow, vulnerable song to showcase his genuine emotions and feelings. It is a fantastic song when someone like me, needing to carry so much on my shoulders, needs to just slow down in life and relate to the words in my own way. Webbing down the song’s chorus, Post executes a clear melody that sticks out and lingers as the song progresses and once it is over. Entering into the production, even with a slow song, Malone really knows how to throw those drums into it without taking away the sensitivity of the music. Like in the bridge, he removes the drums and gives us raw, emotional vocals.

Web-slingers, this is one album that is 100% worth the listen. With the connection and vulnerability, Post Malone (a native New Yorker) gives to us fans, there is something that any of us can relate to. I mainly thought about balancing the lives of TWO people through the listens I did. He combined pop, hip-hop, and rock into a single album with no misses. Whether you are swinging all across the city, taking some down, sitting at the top of a skyscraper, or even fighting a supervillain, there is a song for all the moments. Check all 17 songs on the album and tell me which is your favourite! Thank you, Mirrorball Melodies, for allowing me to give a review, and I will catch all of you guys later!!