Hellmode

Hellmode (stylized in all caps) is the fifth[lower-alpha 1] solo studio album by American musician Jeff Rosenstock, released through Polyvinyl Record Co. on August 31, 2023. It has received positive reviews from critics.

Hellmode
A pink-tinted collage of photos and drawings with "HELLMODE" written in a blackletter font across the middle
Studio album by
Jeff Rosenstock
ReleasedAugust 31, 2023
RecordedSummer 2022
Studio
  • EastWest Studios, Hollywood, California
  • The Atomic Garden, East Oakland, California
GenrePunk rock
Length41:03
LabelPolyvinyl
ProducerJack Shirley
Jeff Rosenstock chronology
Ska Dream
(2021)		 Hellmode
(2023)
Singles from Hellmode
  1. "Liked U Better"
    Released: May 23, 2023
  2. "Doubt"
    Released: June 27, 2023
  3. "Healmode"
    Released: July 27, 2023

Writing and recording

Most of the songs on the album were fleshed out when Rosenstock spent a few days staying near Joshua Tree National Park; he went there to write after a tour was canceled due to COVID in early 2022.[1]

Rosenstock recorded the album in summer 2022 with producer Jack Shirley.[2] The album was primarily recorded at EastWest Studios in Hollywood, California, and the Atomic Garden in East Oakland.[3]

On recording the album, Rosenstock said, "I had a day where I was just running shit from Hellmode through the fucking echo chambers that were used on Pet Sounds. That's huge for me! What a fucking dream. We had a parking spot in the back. It certainly energized me. I was like, 'How do we get this to sound like something from those major label punk records in the '90s—the ones that sounded good, the ones that sounded like the band went somewhere real and had somebody record it well and have that punch?' I don't know if the space necessarily made that so or anything, but it was cool to see all the names on the wall and feel like we were part of that continuum of music. We're a bunch of scrappy weirdos and we don't often feel like we're a part of it."[4]

Release

Hellmode was announced on June 27, 2023, with a release date of September 1.[5] Along with the announcement, Rosenstock released the second single, "Doubt".[5] "Doubt" also came with a music video made by members of the team behind the cartoon series Craig of the Creek, for which Rosenstock composes the score.[5] Prior to the announcement, the lead single "Liked U Better" was released on May 23.[6] The third single, "Healmode", was released on July 27, with a lyric video by Dan Potthast starring a snail named Champ.[7][8]

The album was surprise-released a day early on August 31.[9]

Reception
Hellmode ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic84/100[10]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[11]
Clash9/10[12]
Exclaim!8/10[13]
The Line of Best Fit8/10[14]
Paste7.5/10[15]
Pitchfork8.0/10[16]

According to the review aggregator Metacritic, Hellmode received "universal acclaim" based on a weighted average score of 84 out of 100 from 6 critic scores.[10]

In Exclaim!, Adam Feibel scored this release an 8 out of 10, calling it "an album of fun, catchy punk anthems, it hits all the right notes" that is "quintessential Rosenstock".[13] Editors at Stereogum named Hellmode Album of the Week, with critic Patrick Hosken characterizing the album as "rife with climate anxiety, mental anguish, and tender acoustic moments" that has two halves of "amplified apprehension and a handful of songs based around the acoustic guitar".[17] Pitchfork's Nina Corcoran called the album "the prettiest" Rosenstock has made, "but it still gets you riled up."[16]

While reviewing the album for AllMusic, Mark Deming claimed that, "Rosenstock has a hard time being comfortable with happiness, and while it doubtless makes life stressful for him, it's great for his muse, and Hellmode is loaded with great songs."[11]

Track listing

All songs written by Jeff Rosenstock

  1. "Will U Still U" – 3:21
  2. "Head" – 1:31
  3. "Liked U Better" – 2:50
  4. "Doubt" – 4:28
  5. "Future Is Dumb" – 3:48
  6. "Soft Living" – 4:46
  7. "Healmode" – 3:22
  8. "Life Admin" – 2:43
  9. "I Wanna Be Wrong" – 2:34
  10. "Graveyard Song" – 4:31
  11. "3 Summers" – 7:09

Personnel

Musicians

Technical

Recording

See also

References
  1. Not including Ska Dream (2021), which is a re-recorded album.
  1. Going Off Track - Jeff Rosenstock (podcast). August 30, 2023. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  2. Fu, Eddie (June 27, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock Announces New Album Hellmode, Shares "Doubt"". Consequence. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  3. "Hellmode | Jeff Rosenstock". Bandcamp. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  4. Mitchell, Matt (August 30, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock Pulls Hope from His Washing Machine of Chaos". Features. Paste. ISSN 1540-3106. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
  5. Minsker, Evan (June 27, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock Announces New Album Hellmode, Shares Video for New Song "Doubt"". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  6. Corcoran, Nina (May 23, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock Announces 2023 North American Tour, Shares Video for New Song". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
  7. Breihan, Tom (July 27, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock – "Healmode"". Stereogum. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  8. Sacher, Andrew (July 27, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock shares new song, accompanying essay, & video starring a snail". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
  9. Sacher, Andrew (August 31, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock gives Hellmode surprise early release". brooklynvegan. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
  10. "Hellmode by Jeff Rosenstock Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  11. Deming, Mark (September 1, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock - Hellmode". AllMusic. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  12. Roseblade, Nick (August 31, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock – Hellmode". Clash. Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  13. Feibil, Adam (August 29, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock's Hellmode Is a Soundtrack to Modern Living". Music. Exclaim!. ISSN 1207-6600. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
  14. Kohner, Kyle (August 30, 2023). "A vulnerable Jeff Rosenstock makes a chaotic world bearable on Hellmode". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
  15. Rosenberg, Sam (September 1, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock Wrestles With Collapse on Hellmode". Paste. Retrieved September 8, 2023.
  16. Corcoran, Nina (September 5, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock: Hellmode Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  17. Hosken, Patrick (August 29, 2023). "Jeff Rosenstock Hellmode Review". Album of the Week. Stereogum. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
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