"Just when you think you have Waterparks figured out, the trio come along and manage to shift your perception with tracks that immediately root themselves in your brain, encouraging repeated listens until you grow sick of them - though I highly doubt you will."
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Must Listen
By Rachel D’Arcy
Recommended tracks: “War Crimes,” “Telephone,” “High Definition”
FANDOM is a raw album. Raw in it’s lyricism, courtesy of frontman Awsten Knight, raw in it’s handling of fame, fans, love and friendship, and raw in it’s expression through all 38 minutes of it.
This album has been long awaited by Waterparks fans, following Knight announcing he’d scrapped a previous record, rumoured to be called Friendly Reminder, the follow up to 2018’s Entertainment and their first release on Hopeless Records.
FANDOM is worth the wait though, as all 15 tracks deliver a new dimension to Waterparks. If this was Mario Kart, they’ve definitely levelled up, taking things from 50cc straight up to 150cc in everything from production to lyrical syntax.
Kicking off with “Cherry Red” – a potential nod to the “era” colour that Friendly Reminder may have been given – the in-your-face punch of the melodies introduces FANDOM and it’s “sour green” aesthetic in a big way. The album’s lead single “Watch What Happens Next” brought that to the fore with “Dream Boy” solidifying a similar sentiment. Vocalist Knight is taking aim at those who expect too much, reward the trio too little, and the dark side of what life post-“blow up,” and post break up, has left him enduring.
It becomes clear quickly that Knight, who is the mastermind behind a majority, if not all of Waterparks’ lyrics, isn’t holding back on FANDOM. Emotions are real and dealt with in the frankest of ways. Even melodically riffs and guitar solos from Geoff Wigington pack a solid punch, with drummer Otto Wood maintaining the album’s vibe through steady beats.
To a point, it’s refreshing to hear someone speak so frankly about “fandom” and business in the genre Waterparks have found themselves associated with. Granted, they aren’t the first band to address those that have done them wrong. However, there’s a sincere snarl and growl to Knight’s vocal that makes it all seem a bit more personal, that edge seeming more authentic.
“War Crimes” is a particular middle finger to everything that’s plagued Knight – and potentially the band as a whole – in the last few years. “Behind my forehead’s an assortment of things I’d like to forget” kicks off the foot stomping beat, followed by an assortment of lyrics like “my death will be the fandom / give back my halo you stole” that truly speak to how the band feel.
Another major theme on FANDOM is heartbreak, and the post-relationship way of thinking. Lyrics are cryptic, yet to the point. We see a vulnerability to Knight on slower tracks like “High Definition” and “Never Bloom Again,” but this thread also carries through on the higher energy “Telephone” and “Easy To Hate.”
Whilst lumped in with the pop-punk category, FANDOM creates a division between Waterparks and the rest of the genre in terms of experimental melodies – the club classic dance break on “War Crimes” being a particular highlight as well as the electro-pop reminiscent “Telephone” and the folk-esque “IMHSBALIDWD.”
Just when you think you have Waterparks figured out, the trio come along and manage to shift your perception with tracks that immediately root themselves in your brain, encouraging repeated listens until you grow sick of them – though I highly doubt you will.
