Music Review // Bad Self Portraits "I Think I'm Going To Hell"

 https://badselfportraits.bandcamp.com/album/i-think-im-going-to-hell-2

Bad Self Portraits comes on and right away this just feels like hugging someone you haven't seen in years but wish you saw more frequently.   There is just something familiar about this sound, as it leans more toward the 1990's grunge and alternative rock era than modern rock.  While I am reminded of current artists such as Audio Jane, I also think about everything from the era of That Dog and Letters To Cleo, as Bad Self Portraits can combine the prettiest of melodies with the heaviest of distortion.

As the songs "Pensive" and the titular track were released prior to this album, the entire album itself was also released as part of the Buy Before You Stream label (still available here), and it is only now making its digital debut.   While the songs you know might stand out on here, the other songs are also equally as important and feel as big musically to where there aren't really "singles" but rather this is just such a solid album from start to finish.

The third song, "Windowsill", is about loss as it opens with the lines "I wanna get back who I was / before you got sick, and I forgot myself" which might not be as blatant a loss as is in the song "Ellery", which says "How am I to believe / The afterlife's the one thing that they got right".  While "Windowsill" has this big, grinding breakdown, "Ellery" breaks down more some cross between Deftones and Chevelle, which is just so powerful and intense.

Things slow down on the song "To Love & Get Lost", which feels like the type of ballad you would slow dance to, and then they continue slower with synths and winding guitars on the last song "Casio".   Listening to "I Think I'm Going To Hell" makes think about how well this would've fit in with bands around 1996, but at the same time, it's 2025 and so rather than look back to the past I think we need to celebrate Bad Self Portraits for who they are now and also hope that this sound can help drive a new generation of rock n roll.