If you’re looking for something light, soft and fluffy, this is not it. Nashville-based Bully delivers a second album, Losing, that is gritty and angry, yet surprisingly upbeat. The album is filled with heavy guitars that are complimented by angsty female vocals that lead the listener through a tense album filled with personal lyrics.
The vocals from lead singer and guitarist Alicia Bognanno fluctuate between coarse, rough screams and clear-cut, gentle singing. Losing’s lead track “Feel the Same” is the perfect example of this. This track feels very pointed and though the lyrics are a little repetitive, the song itself does not feel this way, due to upbeat guitars and a fast pace that allows the listener just a brief glimpse into momentary stagnation. “Focused” is a track that is significantly more slowed down than the rest of them on the album. The opening pace immediately grabs attention as the vocals do not wrestle with the guitars (as they seem to do the rest of the time), but gently float above them. While “You Could Be Wrong” is not as slow as “Focused,” they share similarities within the vocals.
Overall, Losing packs a much bigger punch than Bully’s first album, Feels Like, which revamped 90s alt-rock into something for a new generation. Losing is something new and different; it perfectly captures the feeling of being young and not really sure what you want to do with anything. At the same time, the rhythm and pace carried throughout most of the album provide catharsis for anxious feels.
-Casey O’Neill