The Front Bottoms are a musical duo combining the vocals and guitar of Brian Sella with the drumming of Mathew Uychich. Being active since the late 2000s, The Front Bottoms have released 7 full length albums with many

and single drops along the way. On April 17th, they released their first new single since early 2022: Outlook, off of their new album “You Are Who You Hang Out With.” 

Outlook is a combination of the lyricism and storytelling nature of early Front Bottoms with the vocals and instrumentation of their later albums. Outlook’s lyrics are that of a first-person story, Sella taking on the role of narrator and protagonist as he tells a story of love, something common in their albums “The Front Bottoms” and “Talon Of The Hawk.” However, this is contrasted with their more modern musicality, Sella’s vocal technique being more reminiscent of “In Sickness And In Flames” while Uychich’s drumming more reflects his work on “Going Gray.” 

The song, ignoring the statistical evolution of the band, is a wonderful listen. A simple guitar chord loop and solid backing drum track create an easily recognizable melody, mixed with one of Sella’s best vocal performance and lyrics. In usual Front Bottoms styling, the message, story and theme of the song are intentionally vague, allowing the listener to draw their own conclusions of what the duo means. In all, Outlook perfectly fits into the duo’s discography while still managing to hold its own identity. Being the first single off a new album, Outlook perfectly sets up a tone and expectation of something new, yet familiar to fans.

All in all, Outlook is everything you’d expect and want from a Front Bottoms track: Emotional, catchy, relatable, stylish and just a good listen. Check it out if you’re in need of something new to listen to.