Best years of my life - upsetter single review
- Kaylah Chilcott
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
brisbane's gazey emo outfit, upsetter, have dropped their first single of 2025, 'best years of my life'. it is a short departure from their 2023 album, doomgaze and 2024 singles, which could be a good indication of the direction upsetter will continue to take!
if you're familiar with doomgaze, it is certainly quite raw at times, with raw vocals set far into the mix and a grungey guitar tone still sharp enough to take a bite out of you. out of the gate, 'best years of my life's production quality and overall sound is noticeably different, more closely resembling their 2024 singles.
OPening gently guitar riffs, synth beats and dual vocals from members jasper webb and emily hopley, it sounds much cleaner. according to their bandcamp, they are recording with chris lalic from windwaker (an upcoming album, in fact), and you can tell. There is a lot of separation between instruments and frequency occupation, which has really tidied up their sound.
As mentioned, this is only a short walk from the upsetter we have come to know and love, while a lot of the verses create space, they expand back out across the chorus. Webb brings in his signature harsh vocals and the guitar fuzz is turned right up.
Building on their sound, the second verse drags the guitar across, not returning to the dainty sound we heard in the intro, and hopley has a short solo section, which isn't something we got much of from doomgaze, where webb's vocals are front and center.
while most of it isn't overly complicated, drummer Sebastian Jennings-Hingston's kick tone is absolutely mint, punching right through any part of the song. I do wonder if it would have had some more upsetter charm if they continued to use the acoustic kit instead of the synth in the verses. I am biased - i just love raw noise. (I was secretly hoping for something that sounded like the end of their 2024 'maleny drive' - but there is still time!)
With this all in mind, it is a clear flag for the direction we can expect upsetter's (unconfirmed? not facebook official) next album. i hope they continue to work with lalic, and i anxiously wait for an official album announcement
be like me, stay tune in with upsetter!
