Nashville’s genre-mashing dynamo The Frst has proudly released its blistering new full-length album, "This Never Happened." It’s a musical powder keg already exploding in the face of the alternative and punk rock scene. At just over 33 minutes and across 13 explosive tracks, the album is not so much a comeback as a dare.
Produced by industry veterans George Perks (Skindred, Enter Shikari) and Matt Malpass (Blink-182, Machine Gun Kelly), "This Never Happened" is a lesson in bending punk’s raw edge around alt-rock’s emotional core and genre-hopping freedom. Frst front-man, singer-songwriter Mikei Gray has assembled a who’s who of rock drop-ins for this one, with members of Eagles of Death Metal, Bowling For Soup, Sleeping With Sirens, Chiodos, The Almost, and The Dangerous Summer appearing as special guests.
Tracks like “This Is Me Now” kick in, sounding like thunder, a punk ethos with catchy guitar lines and a chorus that slaps you across the chest. It’s an anthem of self-identity in a world of digital distortion. Meanwhile, “Big Shot” delivers a tongue-in-cheek takedown of ego and industry fakery, all wrapped in pop-punk hooks and a smirk that’s not easily scrubbed away. But Jasta is not all fist-pumping hatred. There’s melody, heart, and evolution. And yet, although the whiplash genre changes and the ska-tinged rhythms, the alt-rock ballad "This Never Happened" is a cohesive, slick, and undoubtedly The Frst album somehow.
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