I’ll admit that I haven’t been really grabbed by PUP’s work since Morbid Stuff back in 2019. That album was kind of lightning in a bottle; an anthemic pop punk album that took vocalist/ rhythm guitarist Stefan Babcock’s most vulnerable feelings about anxiety, death, and wallowing depression and channelled them through 11 compelling songs, with no real duds. The work after, the This Place Sucks Ass EP, and follow-up album, The Unraveling of PUPTheBand went for more of an indie sound and to my ears, it didn’t really measure up, and maybe because it sounded like three or four songs reworked over and over again.
So here we are with a new album, Who Will Look After The Dogs?, and I’m happy to report that it’s in the same wheelhouse as Morbid Stuff, with some of these lyrics reading as fantastically devastating. Babcock delves deep into personal themes, exploring relationships, mental health, and self-reflection with a candidness that resonates throughout the album. The album opens with “No Hope,” setting a tone of existential angst that carries through tracks like “Olive Garden” and “Hunger For Death.”
In “Olive Garden,” Babcock’s dark humour shines as he recalls a failed romantic encounter, but I can’t for the life of me get over the excessive, whiny vocal style. “Hunger For Death” confronts self-destructive tendencies head-on. “Get Dumber,” featuring Jeff Rosenstock, injects a burst of chaotic energy, reminiscent of PUP’s earlier work, while “Concrete” delivers a cathartic punch with its brash instrumentation.
The riffs are heavy on “Hallways,” the lead single, which encapsulates the album’s themes of loss and introspection, highlighting the overdramatic thoughts that can arise during dark moments, which the band acknowledges with a touch of humour, quite similar to how they did on Morbid Stuff. We also get the brutal line “I’m losing the will to keep dragging on / But I can’t die yеt ’cause who will look after the dog?”
Overall, Who Will Look After the Dogs? showcases PUP’s commitment to authenticity, embracing imperfections and emotional vulnerability.
