The Armed – Ultrapop (Recommendation)

Everyone loves surprises, especially those that are unexpected (the good ones). The Armed have always been a band, that got the great moment of surprise on their side. With every release they caught their fans off guard and tested their tolerance in a positive way. 

ULTRAPOP is not different. When I first saw the live-video of „All Futures“ I was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of „things“ in this video: the scenery (something like an old game-show-stage?), the song (although very chaotic, I would classify it as a great version of a pop-song, imagined by the Armed) and the band as a whole (8 Members, extravagant outfits, it had something of a bizarro-world version of the Village People).

Everytime a band or musician tries to add something to their sound or alter it, there’s always the risk, that fans get repelled by it. Either fans want the band to sound always like their first demo or they should sound like the album before (which was of course also looked down upon by release). 

A band can avoid that problem, if change is a key element in their DNA. Great examples for that are, besides the Armed, the Dillinger Escape Plan (R.I.P.) or the Blood Brothers (R.I.P.). You just would not expect the Armed to repeat themselves, they just can’t do it. There is a genuity to the weirdness, they pull it off and there is no question about it. It is not a gimmick and that makes bands like the Armed special.

One can be convinced, that the Armed will stay ever-changing and challenge their listeners. ULTRAPOP succeeds in surprising and surpasses the already high expectation easily.