Hellogoodbye is back again with a new album and a new sound, kind of.

The band released their third studio album on Oct. 29, titled “Everything is Debatable.” We last heard from Hellogoodbye in 2010 when they revamped their sound and took a different direction with “Would it Kill You?”

That album strayed away from the band’s original synth-pop sound and moved toward an indie sound. The album received a large amount of praise for more instrumentals and less auto-tune, which had been a big key in the composition of Hellogoodbye’s first album “Zombies! Aliens! Vampires! Dinosaurs!”

The band’s newest release can best be described as a fusion of the previous albums. “Everything is Debatable” features a lot more synth sounds like those from the first album, and a lot of raw vocals and instruments that came from the second album. The result is a refreshing and fun sound that fans of both previous albums are sure to enjoy.

The opening song, “And Everything Becomes a Blur,” starts off the album with a big dose of arcade-like synth sounds as the song evolves fun and happy indie rock song. It kicks off the album perfectly, reflecting Hellogoodbye’s previous sounds while acknowledging they have moved on.

The best track on the album is “The Magic Hour is Now,” an upbeat feel-good love song with a quick tempo and a wonderful combination of synth and instruments. 

Another great song from the album is “Just Don’t Let Go Just Don’t.” The track is happy and upbeat, and sounds like something you might hear in an iPod commercial. This track could probably have even gone on Hellogoodbye’s first album because of its similar sound to the tracks on “Zombies! Aliens! Vampires! Dinosaurs!”

The closing song on the album, “A Near Death Experience,” is the perfect track to end with. It begins slow and laid back, and builds up a great amount as the song progresses. By the end, it resolves quickly and effortlessly.

The only drawback of the album is that many of the songs sound a little too similar, so during the first listen, listeners might become bored with the content of the album. However, after a few more listens of the album, you learn to enjoy each song for its composition and lyrical quality.

Hellogoodbye is currently touring with Paramore and Metric.

4/5