my Stampede(2019) review

"Forever!" turned out to be another good album from (hed) p.e. mainly because the band seemed to be more focused when it came to writing songs, plus since their Pavement Entertainment signing, they had toned down on the political rants/conspiracy theories a lot, which for me was refreshing. So of course (hed) p.e. would continue to tour and stuff but by 2018 would experience another line-up change recruiting D.J. Blackard as their new guitarist. So June 2019 saw the release of (hed) p.e.'s eleventh album "Stampede", released through Pavement Entertainment and the now relaunched Suburban Noize Records. But the album saw a drastic change in (hed) p.e.'s sound having more of a modern rap influence and by that I mean a lot of usage of autotune. Despite this, how is the album? Let's find out as I review the album track-by-track(*not including hidden or bonus tracks*)

1. No Apologies
The album starts off well taking a piece of modern hip-hop and mixing it with rock elements, the chorus is actually enjoyable making it a good way to start the album.
Rating:4/5

2. Can I Rock
The song has a simple but rocking chorus and the verses feature of course the modern hip-hop influence. The rapping in the verses could be a little better plus there is a usage of autotune that feels unneccesary. But overall, it's a fair track.
Rating:3.5/5

3. PWF
Probably my favorite track on the album mainly because the song is well structured for what it is, the modern hip-hop verses build up well into the catchy heavy chorus making it a good song.
Rating:4/5

4. Boss Up
Decent track. Some lackluster hip-hop/autotuned verses are then saved by an alright chorus
Rating:3/5

5. Why Not Me
A punk track with an okay chorus and screechy vocals from Jared. For me, one of their weaker punk tracks and feels out of place on this album. Average.
Rating: 2.5/5

6. Rise
Not much I can say other than this song does an average job of blending auto-tune rap with rock elements. I like the use of the melodica at the end though.
Rating:2.5/5

7. Untouchable
A track I can't really get into simply because I'm not a fan of modern rap and this track sort of screams that and feels really repetitive. The song also has a dub-steppy outro because apparently dub-step is still a thing.
Rating:2/5

8. Narragansett
So far this album just feels really formulaic and this track is another example of that. Luckily, it has a decent rock chorus that saves it. Plus, there is a hint at (hed) p.e.'s apparent upcoming hiatus on the track.
Rating:3/5

9. Die Another Day
Another formulaic track that I just can't really get into. Has a decent chill outro though.
Rating:2/5

10. Time Of My Life
At this point, I've heard enough autotune/modern hip-hop influence throughout this album and they insist on doing it on the closing track which I find to be the weakest track on the album.
Rating:1.5/5

Overall, I will start off by saying that I don't follow modern hip-hop, trap rap, mumble rap, whatever you want to call it, I'm simply not a fan of it and with that being said, this album really didn't do anything for me. I will also say that for these reasons, I would consider this (hed) p.e.'s weakest album, yes weaker than both "Only In Amerika" and "Insomnia." There are only a few tracks where the mixing of modern rap elements with rock elements works, but for the most part they really over do it resulting in the songs becoming formulaic and boring for the most part.

OVERALL RATING: 4.5/10