“I was a mess, you were the glue.“
Since their record White Flag, which heralded deserved acclaim and is often held up as Normandie‘s strongest work, the trio have taken a somewhat different methodology towards their sound. Dark & Beautiful was a part of the trend that saw post-hardcore units embrace pop sensibilities to varying degrees, paying dividends for the likes of Bad Omens and Sleep Token, and Normandie have decided to double down on it with their latest record, Dopamine.
Opener “Overdrive” presents a racing energy layered with electronics that is part and parcel for many bands of a similar ilk, yet it’s just about passable. As 2014 Tumblr-esque lyric, “I can’t live without hurting, fill with me serotonin,” is yelled out on following track “Serotonin“, it does starkly hint that Dopamine might be quite a drawn-out ride. Pivoting the track around the vocal hook of “Fill me up with serotonin,” with overly dramatic vocals and layered in electronics suggests it’s shooting for the same market in the online space as the two aforementioned bands.
“Flowers for the Grave” and “Blood in the Water” continue to indulge in sounds that seem only a stone’s throw from something The Neighbourhood might cook up, just with a heavier twist. The former even delves into the “Hurt people hurt people” lyricism, borrowing from the verbiage of The Script. The ears do perk up at “Rituals“, with backing strings adding a certain charm to the track, even if the cheesiness of the lyricism is a little too potent.
Electronic- and bass-led “Butterflies” drags Dopamine back down, paced, almost spoken vocals from Strand drain any energy that “Rituals” managed to build up. While a more cynical view might see it as a lacklustre imitation of some of their contemporaries, there are attempts to capture some of the Normandie of old with “Colorblind” and “Hourglass“. However, it does feel many bands since Normandie initially polished this sound have made a much more capturing image of it since, and the feature from Bury Tomorrow vocalist Dani Winter-Bates on the latter feels slightly left-field on one of the more melodic tracks.
In its closing tracks, Normandie doesn’t stray too far from its clichés: “Make up your mind if you want to let me go,” (“Sorry“) and “Like a deer in the headlights,” (“All in my head“); it all becomes rather exhaustive, especially when the former drops, “I can’t bring a knife to a gun fight.” Closer “Glue” doesn’t stray too far either, even if the jangly manner of the track crosses somewhat into Twin Atlantic territory.
While Normandie did arguably need to evolve beyond their previous-decade post-hardcore sound to maintain interest, embracing the alternative pop-rock space that is currently well occupied, and will require something special to disrupt, seems an odd route to go down. There is the bizarre chance Normandie will see some critical success from Dopamine, although on any worthwhile reflection it will be seen as a creative nadir.
3/10
Dopamine is out February 9th via Early Life Records.