Matthew Musto
, aka
Blackbear
, has always straddled musical genres, pairing hip-hop with rock and electronic dance music with R&B. On his sixth studio album, 2022's exuberant
In Loving Memory
, the Florida-born, Los Angeles-based singer/producer continues to smash sounds together, even as he turns his attention back to his punk and emo roots with a series of high-energy rockers. It's a vibe he first debuted with the single "GFY," a laid-back and hooky song featuring
Machine Gun Kelly
that moves from a chopped-and-screwed-style verse to a chugging, guitar-drenched chorus that wouldn't sound out of place on a '90s
Weezer
album. Other guests help
conjure equally potent throwback emo vibes elsewhere, as on the driving "Toxic Energy" with
the Used
, and fist-pumping pop-punk anthem "Nothing Matters" with
New Found Glory
. Much of the album occupies the same liminal alt-pop space that artists like
Halsey
, the aforementioned
Kelly
, and even
Post Malone
have embraced since the late 2010s, as they moved to recapture the angsty romanticism of their punk youth while still holding fast to the dark, hip-hop swagger that helped make them famous. In
's case, he balances pop hooks with diaristic angst, and cuts like "Painkiller" and the spiraling "Poltergeist" with
Bayside
help make
one of his funnest and most infectiously listenable albums. ~ Matt Collar