Die To Fall Coming off of the success of their self-titled era, The Maine have returned with their “green era” at a time when interest in the band is at a fever pitch. The band sought out to create a full artistic statement of an album for their 10th studio album to date, and was written and recorded in the same sequencing as the final tracklisting found on Joy Next Door. “I suppose it’s only fitting that our tenth album has been one of the toughest to make to date,” lead vocalist John O’Callaghan says of Joy Next Door. “Most of the personal friction I’ve felt during the making of this record has derived from having to face my own struggle with feeling like I have everything I could have ever dreamed of, yet I can’t seem to allow myself to be fully present and appreciate the weight of a very fortunate life.” Some of the growing pains that both O’Callaghan and The Maine go through on this record bleed into the overall listening experience of Joy Next Door, but it’s an album that’s worthy of the legacy that the band has created for themselves.
”Green” starts off Joy Next Door with a more restrained and vulnerable version of The Maine as O’Callaghan admits on the chorus, “I wanna be alright / To fall forever.” Coming from the same band who told their 8123 Family that You Are OK in 2019, the simple but loaded statement of wanting everything to be alright in our lives is a relatable feeling in today’s world. As the acoustic guitar-based track introduces more instruments starting with Pat Kirch’s drums, The Maine rally around their vocalist with a full-sounding opener that accentuates their growth as a band and their understanding of what each song needs. “Alone For A Year” brings more context behind O’Callaghan’s lyrics and quote regarding the friction he felt in making this album, as he shares on the chorus, “Alone for a year / Looking for a friend / It’s just another day, another day and night / Do I ever cross your mind?” His wanting to be connected with others on a deeper level paints a picture of conflict, and the somber instrumentation of the song meshes well with the lyrics.
”Half A Spark” begins to pick the tempo up a bit in the early-going of the track as The Maine explode out of the gate, and then get into a comfortable groove in the verses. The song has a bit of an indie rock feel to it, much like The Strokes, in its song structure and vibe to the chorus. The guitar parts from Jared Monaco and Kennedy Brock remain really captivating and interesting throughout the song, and it makes for a noteworthy addition to the band’s discography. “Palms” was one of the more recent singles to be released from the set and it’s an easy choice of a key track to highlight from Joy Next Door. The song features a vibrant bass line from Garrett Nickelsen while O’Callaghan’s vocal performance continues to shimmer on the chorus of, “Don’t think / It all happens for a reason / Fuck that / Well, the night is unknown / Yeah, yeah, yeah / Don’t think, let it happen.” At a time when our minds can be our own worst enemy, the advice of just letting the world fall into place for us is a solid mantra.
The title track seems comfortable settling into a bit of a subdued groove for The Maine as O’Callaghan describes what it means to find joy and comfort all around us. Lyrics like, “Every picture on the wall / Says the hardest part of change is staying / Joy comes and goes / And some flowers never grow old / Sometimes in the background” find the band at an important crossroads of their lives. While the search for happiness is never a straight line, The Maine recognize that sometimes it takes real effort in order to make our dreams come true. “3:31” finds O’Callaghan and The Maine grappling with the idea of being famous, or at least the impression of it, as they share in the second verse, “I wonder if they think I’m in Oasis / I think it’s better that they never figure out /But I still like the way it sounds / When makeup runs just a little / Tell me I’m the only reason you’re around.” There’s an old saying that “it’s very lonely at the top”, and the band explore this idea conceptually through their navigation of detailed songwriting.
”Quiet Part Loud” begins with a pretty cool drum fill from Kirch, while O’Callaghan’s smooth vocal delivery remains top notch as he croons over the eclectic drum beat with veteran ease. When John sings, “Yeah, we’re eye to eye on a night that never slows down / Let’s burn for a while before we fade out” it comes through the speakers with a warmness and glow behind the words that make the listener feel like everything is going be alright. “Die To Fall” is another great example of where the band uses their own personal struggles to escape from their insecurities. O’Callaghan shared that this single “is a dialogue with myself about the desire to let go. Let go of my insecurities, my ego, my worries, let go of ‘me; for even just a second and truly feel the gravity of all the little moments we can often take for granted. If none of the above resonates, then at the very least, it’s a song to rage to.” The track is aggressive as The Maine ever get on Joy Next Door, and it comes at just the right moment in the sequencing to break up some of the similar-sounding material.
After the somber song of “A Brief Commercial Break”, that is largely just O’Callaghan sharing his passing thoughts that float above the mix like a dream sequence, The Maine regroup with “It’s Not Over Yet.” The latter track steadily picks up speed as it gets going, and the kick drum allows for a moment for fans to clap along their appreciation for a band that’s unafraid of taking some big risks on their tenth studio album. O’Callaghan shares, “It ain’t over yet / Level out and hit the floor with it / It ain’t our fault we don’t know how to quit / Well, living’s easy out here on the edge,” as a way of telling a sequential story from start to finish as he explores the depths of where his thoughts can take him. The journey is well worth it, and the piano-laced ballad of an album closer, “And Then”, plays out like a song that you’d hear over the speakers at a wedding. O’Callaghan carefully croons, “Hey, my heart’s a little frayed, but it’s mine, all mine” as a way of saying that he’s okay with his faults, and sees it as a way of growing up gracefully and wisely.
Joy Next Door may not be the album that people expected from The Maine at the high point of their career, but it’s a record that they needed to make and put out into the world in order to move forward. Maybe it’s a bit of a detour before taking the next full journey in their self-discovery as a band, but Joy Next Door takes the time to appreciate just how far they’ve come, the relationships/friendships they’ve made along the way, and coming out of it all with a deeper understanding of where to go next. We all have a right to find the joy in our own lives, whatever that looks like, and this pursuit of happiness takes a sizeable amount of self-effort in order to make that happen. That concept is worth applauding The Maine for as they navigate their way through a life in music that is for the better because they’re such a big part of it.