The key line, “I was baptized in your parents’ pool in Southern California, then I fled,” feels like an intentional callback to “Rescued” (“And there this was, hiding at the bottom of your swimming pool, some September”). “Brooklyn, You’re Killing Me,” the album’s proper opener, calls back to Everything in Transit in more ways than just its spoken-word sections. With songs this big in his back pocket, it’s honestly remarkable that McMahon hasn’t scored more hits throughout his career. Similarly massive are “So Close” and “Brooklyn, You’re Killing Me.” The former offers an infectious danceable beat, while the latter pairs spoken word verses with a big shout-along chorus in a way that recalls parts of “I’m Ready,” from Everything in Transit. It’s among the catchiest songs McMahon has ever written. The intro and verses are backed by tinkling pianos, while the choruses open up into a skyscraping hook, a colossal bass drop, and a “woah-oh” earworm in the backing vocals. The actual lead single is the luminescent “Fire Escape,” which splits the difference between where McMahon comes from and where he’s going. Indeed, Zombies is the kind of record where at least half the songs could have been the lead single. (The song, “Cecilia and the Satellite,” peaked at 96.) The success of “Cecilia” paves the road to Zombies on Broadway, McMahon’s second album under the Wilderness moniker and his purest pop album to date. Fittingly, it scored Andrew his first charting single on the Billboard Hot 100. 2014’s Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness was heavy on synths, big beats, and towering pop hooks. Since Jack’s Mannequin ended its three-album journey with 2011’s People & Things, McMahon has only gone further down the pop rabbit hole. Suffice to say that BuzzFeed hit the nail on the head (for the first and last time) when it labeled “Konstantine” as the emo “Freebird.” When McMahon transitioned his career from Something Corporate into the poppier and more mature Jack’s Mannequin, it was a testament to his talent as a songwriter, his likability as a performer, and the strong personal resonance of his work that just about all of his fans were willing to go along for the ride. Starting with Something Corporate, which offered a piano-led twist on the emo/pop-punk trends of the early 2000s, McMahon has been regarded as a master of melody and a writer capable of churning out fiercely relatable songs. Andrew McMahon is an artist who has had a very loyal and passionate following for a very long time.
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