THE VACCINES

There is, of course, a difference between having fun and being happy, says frontman Justin Young. That's why the sixth album by his band The Vaccines falls right in between. "Pick-Up Full Of Pink Carnations," due out in January, is dripping with fun - ten songs in just over half an hour, packed with hooks, melodies and pop smarts - but also explores what happens when real life lets us down, no matter what we tell the world with our Instagram stories. It's about loss and coming to terms with it. Not necessarily about mourning, but about understanding a development, and not just in the romantic sense. It's about lost dreams, underscored by the departure of founding member and guitarist Freddie Cowan, who left the band to spend more time with his family. Nevertheless, The Vaccines found themselves strengthened by this change, also because it was the first time they financed the recording themselves without having a contract with a major label. The album's title comes from a misremembered lyric in Don McLean's "American Pie," which triggered a train of thought for Young. That iconic song, Young says, was about disappointment with America and the American dream and the feeling that something had died. "I guess I was dealing with similar things. It all came to a head when different relationships ended. That was the seed that then grew into the album." What makes the new Vaccines record special is that complicated feelings like ambivalence, doubt, fear, maybe even some shame are wrapped up in pop songs that bubble up like an effervescent fountain. That, he says, makes it easier to feel less alone. That's why every track on "Pick-Up Full Of Pink Carnations" sounds like it should be a single. But that's partly because of how the band has always chosen the songs that go on their albums. There's not much talk about the flow or the message. Instead, the members vote on their favorite songs. In the studio, they were assisted by producer Andrew Wells, who gave the classic, '60s-inspired, New Wave-filtered guitar pop a very modern sheen. That's exactly what fans can experience live in January, when The Vaccines finally join us on tour for the first time since 2018. - Pick-Up Full Of Pink Carnations Tour
Support: Teen Jesus & the Jean Teasers