ALBUM REVIEW: Chaos In Bloom – Goo Goo Dolls

Alternative pop-rockers the Goo Goo Dolls best known for hits Iris, Slide, and Dizzy have produced their 13TH studio album ‘Chaos In Bloom’. The band now only consists of two original members John Rzeznik (vocalist/guitarist) and Robby Takac (bassist/vocalist) who show no sign of stopping after three decades of non-stop touring and producing music.

The opener ‘Yeah, I Like You’ is one of the more upbeat songs on the album about social media and influencers, and the second track ‘War’ is a classic soft-rock love song that is synonymous with the band and their early work. This album is the first one to be produced by Rzeznik; however, it is so well-produced that it is clear he knows what he is doing as the album’s pacing is not too slow and not too fast, it is an exceptional piece of work.

As well as being more experimental, this album also returns to its roots. As they have been a band for so long, it is obvious that the Goo Goo Dolls would want to change their sound over the years. The band even has songs on the album which are from different genres of music such as ‘Day After Day’ which is a pop-rock song and the track ‘Past Mistakes’ which is an indie-rock song. Furthermore, the Goo Goo Dolls show that being together for almost four decades has done wonders. This is because the new album is a great piece of work which follows nicely given their last few albums as a band have been misses, albums such as ‘Boxes’ and ‘Magnetic’ verged more towards the electronic rock with more production-controlled sounds. ‘Chaos In Bloom’ sees the band have a more real sound which would rock stadiums worldwide.

In conclusion, Chaos In Bloom shows off the talent of the band and the production skills of Rzeznik. The best song on the album is ‘Going Crazy’ it is a powerful and upbeat song about the struggles of lockdown and the effects it had on us. It really does sound like a late 90s rock song produced in recent times and caps off a great album by the Dolls.

Rating 4/5