Sophomore albums are a tricky thing in any genre of music. How do you follow up a record as good as 2016’s Inguz, which enabled the band to tour with everyone from Ryan Key Yellowcard to Hands Like Houses? On their new album, White Flag, that question is answered with (mostly) flying colors. While White Flag lacks most of the heavier post-hardcore moments that Inguz had, they’re traded it in for songs with strong pop hooks, and vocalist Philip Strand has, improbably, improved his singing overall.
Losing yourself in White Flag is relatively easy. While a few of the album’s best tracks seem to barely get off the ground before they’re over (I’m looking at you, album opener “Ecstasy”), it only leaves the listener wanting a bit more. That’s certainly not a bad thing, though – there’s something to be said for compacting all your best traits into 3:30 songs. Take the title track, for instance. An obvious album highlight, Normandie really are at their best when dialing the guitars and drums up to eleven. The way the Swedish band simply goes for it over and over again is simply astounding, even if the results aren’t always top class.
Interestingly, there’s almost an electropop undercurrent on songs like “Keep Fucking It Up”. It’s a sunny pop-rock tune that simply bleeds brightness, and might remind the listener of “Starting New” from their previous record in terms of shocking the listener. In the right way, I might add. We haven’t even brought up one of the band’s best tracks to date, “Enough”, which is brimming with an anthemic quality that is also the closest to Inguz the new record gets, sound-wise, anyway. It’s a nod to their recent past while also evolving in an effective way.
Overall, White Flag is a very solid sophomore record. While the entire record isn’t necessarily engaging, there also aren’t any outright even mediocre tracks – and there’s plenty of highlights, too. Aiming for the big time on White Flag, Normandie have hit the mark, and then some.
