If there was ever a way of attempting to cut loose from your former squeaky clean adolescent image and enter the realms of lustful adulthood, then former TV star Taylor Momsen – from Gossip Girl – has come out guns blazing.
The intro to ‘Follow Me Down’, whereby the listener is introduced to the sound of a young woman making very ‘suggestive’ noises, then segues into a concoction of bone-crunching guitar riffs and tub-thumping drumming.
Influences such as Courtney Love, Shirley Manson, and Amy Lee may have played a pivotal role in her musical education, yet none ever came across as desperate to feel so accepted. By that, it seems as though Momsen is trying too hard to shake her past life and depict herself as a tormented soul.
Lyrical content like “For the lines that I take/I’m going to hell/For the love that I make/I’m going to hell” is enough to make one wince, as it’s hard to fathom Momsen ever having to seek any form of redemption for her less than hard-knocked life.
‘Sweet Things’, ‘Fucked Up World’, and the title track contain fast-paced drumming, hook-laden riffs, and screeching guitars. It’s clear the main theme running through this record is a combination of closely entangled lust, sex, and drugs.
It’ll no doubt find an audience with disenchanted and angst-ridden rock fans, but the rest will no doubt change the channel.
Listen to’ Why Did You Bring A Shotgun To The Party’ from Going To Hell here:
