by hapago

It’s here, it’s loud, and it’s clear: MANNING FIREWORKS by MJ LENDERMAN is finally out. Thank god, I don’t have to rely on the youtube bootleg of “WRISTWATCH” anymore (although it’s still fucking amazing and you should listen to it HERE). 

Yet again, he’s delivered an all-hits-no-skips record that feels like a diamond in the rough, something that will make you smile while your heart is actively breaking. Perhaps it’s the changing seasons, or the doomsdayish election, but this album comes out at the perfect time. Simply, it just feels like change. It sounds a lot different than his previous releases–it was recorded at Drop of Sun in North Carolina, but it’s not necessairily solely in the production. It’s more focused and driven; it’s a confident step forward into a world of unknown. 

Starting with the title track, it’s the polar opposite of how he opened BOAT SONGS. “MANNING FIREWORKS,” (the song) is a slow, acoustic number that paints this picture of a close-minded person that reminds you of a family member you may not necessairily agree with on everything. It’s some of the most direct lyrics he’s written: “One of these days/you’ll kill a man/for asking a question/you don’t understand”. 

All of the singles on this album were amazing: “JOKER LIPS,” “RUDOLPH,” “WRISTWATCH,” and “SHE’S LEAVING YOU,” make up the entirety of the first half of the record. This four-song run will be studied by historians and scholars in the future. “WRISTWATCH” and “SHE’S LEAVING YOU,” two of the album’s louder songs, are also two of the album’s most gut-wrenching. “WRISTWATCH” is a great example of this unique songwriting ability–musically, it’s emotional and soul-wrenching, and that closing solo comes from an untapped place. But once you really get into the lyrics, and realize it’s about a guy boasting his apple watch realizing that he’s alone, but at least he’s got these top-dollar goods. It’s not someone I think I’d typically feel sorry for, mostly just because that’s not someone in my immediate life–but it’s interesting to hear someone’s story like that. “SHE’S LEAVING YOU,” the album’s first single, is a scorcher. It starts slow and laid-back, but then it kicks in and sends it to another level. It’s the one that’s been stuck in my head since it came out. It’s that one.

Side B has the sleeper hits–it’s not possible to single any of them out as they’re all amazing in their own ways. “RIP TORN” is an Appalachian love letter, it reminds me of spending Thanksgiving 2019 in Asheville, a big group of people sitting together, playing loosely off each other and finding what works. It’s got a melancholic march about it, and at some point it switches from a drum machine to real drums, but it’s so seamless it’s hard to pinpoint when if you’re not paying careful attention. One of my favorite songs on the entire album is “ON MY KNEES,” it sounds like it could be a ZUMA-era SHAKEY song. This is also the one that I’m the most excited to see live. I think I got thrown the biggest curveball with “BARK AT THE MOON”. All of the early press promised a ten-minute album closer for MANNING FIREWORKS, and I was expecting a “CORTEZ THE KILLER” type song. I was excited to be totally caught off guard with the ending though, but I won’t spoil it! Get into it!!

MANNING FIREWORKS is an increidble album from MJ LENDERMAN, this generation’s guitar hero. I’m stoked that this album is finally out and that it can be heard all the time. Get into it, buy one of the different variants (I copped that 10,000 HZ one), and get to the gig. Til next time!