Well, it’s been almost 2 years since the start of the pandemic and I think we’re finally starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel. People are beginning to accept that this is just how things are and with that, becoming more comfortable with getting back to experiencing life. In my eyes, that calls for a celebration of sorts.
This week i’m going to be highlighting the album that single handedly got me through the lockdowns and larger pandemic as a whole… Four Year Strong’s, “Brain Pain”. This was the album that I needed that I didn’t know I needed until things got wild.
As a fan since 2007 I was really excited when FYS announced their fifth studio album in January of 2020 and I really enjoyed the singles that led up to the release (Talking Myself in Circles & Brain Pain). In my head, this album was going to be the soundtrack for the upcoming spring/summer and I was really looking forward to this. What no one knew was that everything was about to change forever and large parts of the next 2 years would effectively be canceled as we all entered into a Naraka-like world.
From the bands standpoint, the timing of Brain Pain’s release could not have been any worse. From the fans standpoint, the timing could not have been any better. I’m sure this album would have been just as well received by all if the pandemic had never happened however it would have hit differently.
For one, the lyrical content is so incredibly in line with what a lot of people, including myself, were experiencing all throughout the lockdowns and overall pandemic it was hard to believe that this album was written pre-pandemic. Even though these songs were written about completely different issues, in a completely different world (leaving your family to tour, growing older, mental health, etc.) the words sung also described the “new normal” so well. I cannot commend FYS enough on this point because it’s really the ultimate goal when song writing – to write a song that doesn’t just apply to the authors situation but also to that of the listener.
Brain Pain made the mundaneness of the pandemic tolerable as it helped me work through a lot of these new emotions and mental stressers that were/are direct symptom(s) of the pandemic.
I want to really spotlight the lyrics here as well as the vinyl so below you can find a scan of the lyric insert that came with the LP. The artwork is killer and I think reading along as you listen is a really cool experience and honestly one of my favorite things about listening to vinyl.
As for the physical package, I was lucky enough to grab the special album sleeve that Pure Noise made up for pre-order (#42 of 100) that shows each member of FYS as a character from The Simpsons. It’s silly but really fun and was an easy purchase to make when figuring out how I could support the band through the pandemic. Another really cool part of this variant is that the vinyl actually glows in the dark, which while probably not practical for listening in the dark, it’s just another one of those nuances that makes the experience of spinning this record enjoyable.
I could go on for hours about each of these songs and what they mean in my head but I don’t want to skew anyone’s perception if they have never heard this one before. And I really hope that if you haven’t heard this one, you’ll give it a listen because regardless of if the lyrics speak to you or not, it’s a really fun listen with some truly catchy tracks.
Happy spinning!
Four Year Strong – Brain Pain (2020)
Tracklist
| A1 | It’s Cool | 3:23 |
| A2 | Get Out Of My Head | 3:10 |
| A3 | Crazy Pills | 3:30 |
| A4 | Talking Myself in Circles | 3:41 |
| A5 | Learn To Love The Lie | 3:44 |
| A6 | Brain Pain | 3:46 |
| B1 | Mouth Full Of Dirt | 3:15 |
| B2 | Seventeen | 3:25 |
| B3 | Be Good When I’m Gone | 3:20 |
| B4 | The Worst Part About Me | 3:45 |
| B5 | Usefully Useless | 2:59 |
| B6 | Young At Heart | 4:06 |
Accompanying Material
In December of 2021, FYS release the deluxe version of Brain Pain which included some awesome B-Sides as well as a couple of lo-fi remixes that give new life to some of the songs. There is also a great cover of The Verve’s, Bitter Sweet Symphony.
I’ve included the deluxe version of Brain Pain on my playlist below for anyone that is interested.
Please also check out the lo-fi version of my favorite track on Brain Pain, “Learn to Love The Lie”.
The Restless Sound 
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