A line on “Spin” testifies that choosing to terminate a pregnancy has emotional consequences (“The abortion that you had left you clinically dead/And it made it all that much easier to lie”). Elsewhere, vocalist Adam Lazzara acknowledges “acts of God,” seeks safety and hope, is wary in a deceptive world and accepts that he can’t change the past.
These messages are as clear as mud. Creepy, potentially violent lyrics inhabit “I’ll Let You Live” and “What’s It Feel Like to Be a Ghost?” The lines “dull heat rising from the sheets” and “adulteress conditioned to spin-cycled submission” give “My Blue Heaven” a sexual tinge. Physical intimacy turns threateningly possessive on “MakeD–nSure,” which also seems to approve of drunkenness. “Miami” blurts “g–d–n” and proclaims, “The faith you have found I never felt.”
Lazzara says Louder Now represents “a pre- pre-midlife crisis.” Anxiety. Melancholy. A lack of confidence and vision. With a musical style similar to Fall Out Boy, The Cure and My Chemical Romance, this disc gives teens a morally suspect placebo in place of the true intimacy adolescents long for.
After serving as an associate editor at NavPress’ Discipleship Journal and consulting editor for Current Thoughts and Trends, Adam now oversees the editing and publishing of Plugged In’s reviews as the site’s director. He and his wife, Jennifer, have three children. In their free time, the Holzes enjoy playing games, a variety of musical instruments, swimming and … watching movies.
