Written by: Lyric Beyerl
Not long after signing to Rude Records, Tempe, Arizona alt-indie punk band Sundressed released their second album, "Home Remedy" on September 18th. This is the band’s second album, consisting of eleven songs and beginning with the titular track "Home Remedy."
This is an anxiety-filled song, and the lyrical qualities have the nostalgic relevance of a Modern Baseball or The Front Bottoms song mixed with Jimmy Eat World, all the while sounding completely like their own. The song is ultimately about the general concept of getting better, shown in lyrics like, “Anytime I think that I’m dying / I’m usually fine...I guess there’s a reason I’m still here.”
The second song is "Explode! (Into Pieces)", another stress-ridden narrative. Vocalist Trevor Hedges describes himself as a stress ball being thrown against the wall, figuratively exploding from pressure and the after-effects. "No Thanks" is pretty self-explanatory, telling that particular person that no thanks to them you're learning to be okay.
When we’re feeling lost, sometimes the best way to get by is to believe that things will turn around, whether that hopefulness comes from a treatment like therapy or just holding on. "Is This A Drug" explores that perspective of staying the course all the while not being completely sure, in lines like, “I’m so hopeful, I believe everything / I don’t give up easily / I’m so hateful, everyone is after me.”
"Oh Please" returns to the more hopeless perspective, with hints of optimism battling the feeling of wanting to give up. The phrase, “I’m starting to hate the size of my heart,” is a particularly strong and pretty relatable lyric on "Size Of My Heart", a track taking a look at how giving so much of your love to others and none to yourself can weigh so heavily on you.
Oftentimes, adult life isn’t all that it’s made out to be, including an endless amount of responsibilities and the increasing struggle to get some time by alone away from the hecticness that comes with life. Hedges says that, “'Your Frequency' is about the ‘side hustle’ culture. How its never okay to relax, how something always comes up when you’re almost ahead. This song is about the desire to have less worry about essential needs and have more time time to be human.”
According to Hedges, the next song, "Sensitive Motherfucker", wasn't supposed to be on this album. "It was a little scary to record because it’s about me personally being a very sensitive kid growing up who was often made fun of for not being ‘manly’, which I now know as toxic masculinity.”
The song has a sense of personal growth, going from such toxic thoughts to accepting this side of you. Continuing with the apprehensive atmosphere, "The Facts" is full of energy and gives us huge classic emo vibes, while "Cash Out" is just a straight-up happy song. personally, one of my favorites from the album; the lyric “It gets dark and it’s slightly more bearable / Then we’ll realize that life is not so terrible” is definitely a highlight.
The last track, "Beyond Repair", is a perfect closer to the album as well. I believe that "Home Remedy" is a record that will last, painting a clear picture of anxiety-riddled souls finding hope; it’s about finding your own remedy, whatever that may be, that makes life a little less bleak.
"Home Remedy" is available to stream wherever you listen to music, and you can keep up with Sundressed by following them on Twitter @SundressedBand. You can support the band by buying some "Home Remedy" merch, including hoodies, vinyl, mugs, pins, shirts, and more, all available on the band's Merch Now site.
Have you listened to Sundressed's new record "Home Remedy" yet? What do you think of it? Have any favorite tracks? Let us know by tweeting us @lgndsoftmrw!