Long before Skrillex was an EDM god winning Grammy awards hand over first and playing to festivals with 100K ravers in attendance he was known as Sonny Moore, the frontman of emo rock outfit from First To Last who played to a mere 100 raving lunatics in small dingy rock clubs. I was one of those attendees during high school, seeing them alongside He Is Legend in Oakland during my junior year, and there was certainly a moment in my life when FFTL was one of my favorite bands. Everyone I was close with in high school went through an emo phase, and whether or not you ended up wearing mascara and rocking a tellum haircut during that period intensified by raging hormones, or just went about your self-reflection in a more docile way, the themes of heartbreak, loneliness, and yearning to be heard that can be found in this album is as synonymous with that time period as acne on your face.
Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has A Body Count will always hold a special place in my heart for that reason. And while some of the songs that once felt like absolute anthems now are rendered rather cringy (hello “Emily” and “I Liked You Better Before You Were Naked On the Internet”, nice of you to join us), there’s a bunch here that still hold up, buoyed by the nostalgia of it all. I’ll still bump “Kiss Me, I’m Contagious” at full blast with no fucks given, pretending like I’m in my buddy’s white Jeep with all our friends packed in like sardines on our way to the next party.
A final note– Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has A Body Count is objectively a great album title, one of the better from that time period. It’s cheeky, and edgy, and a great marketing piece that tells you exactly what’s on deck before you even hear the first note.
Standout Songs: “Kiss Me, I’m Contagious”, “The One Armed Boxer vs. The Flying Guillotine”, “Featuring Some of Your Favorite Words”, “Populace In Two”, “Ride The Wings of Pestilence”
