There can be many reasons to pick an album to review. Sometimes it is the description, sometimes it is a connection with another band and sometimes it is the artwork. Upon seeing this for the first time I thought: “This better be good, ‘cause artwork like this deserves something good!”. This thought got stronger and stronger after I discovered every one of the eight songs on this album has its own artwork. And they are all equally awesome.
That is nice and all, but what is the music like? Before we talk about that, let’s introduce the band: Bankrupt is a Hungarian pop punk band from Budapest. Illiberal Holiday is their sixth full length release. Quite a feat for a band in a scene where a lot of bands don’t stick around too long. Bankrupt however has been around for 25 years. Illiberal Holiday is my introduction to the band. I have checked out their past releases and can only conclude that this band grows stronger with each release.
Starting out singing in English, the band has switched along the way to offering you both an English version and a Hungarian version. The last three albums have two versions. For this review I listened to both versions of Illiberal Holiday. I must say: I preferred the Hungarian version. To my ears, the singer sounds more relaxed on that version; it sounds more natural and I prefer the flow of the lyrics on it. I translated the Hungarian lyrics and noticed that the lyrics deal with the same subjects, but are completely rewritten. Probably to better fit the song and perhaps because not all references in the Hungarian version will be internationally understood. To be fair, not all references in the English lyrics landed with me. Anyway: hats of for the extra effort the band put in for this.
Back to those lyrics. They are obviously important to the band. They have a lot to say about the current situation in their home country, ranging from politics to how is dealt with nature. Next to that there is also a very personal song about the time their previous singer had spent in a Chinese prison. A tune that obviously means a lot to the band. Looking at the lyrical content and how these lyrics spew criticism you might expect an almost aggressive musical approach. You couldn’t be further from the truth. The term pop punk is already used in this review. This is not the skate type of pop punk. It is a slightly different part of the pop punk landscape. The vibe, especially on the first tracks of the album, reminded me of Limp’s self titled album. Once upon a time I made mixtapes (with actual tapes, oh the nostalgia...) and put a lot of effort in finding bands/tracks with a matching vibe that at the same time had a very distinct character. Limp and Bankrupt connect in such a way for me. Perhaps I should add both bands to one of my playlists on my streaming service. That’s not the same as one of those tapes, but comes close enough.
Let’s check out a couple of songs. “A Hülyeség Ára” kicks of the album and is the first true hit. There is a cool upbeat vibe with ska-inspired parts. It sets the tone and truly is a perfect opener. “Keresett A Feri” has the best chorus of the album. The vocals are really strong on the whole album, but really excel here. There is a certain light, careless vibe hanging around them. Which offers a nice contrast with the lyrics. “Tony Montana” could be familiar, that is, if you already know their previous album Trollok Öltönyben (or Trolls in Suits). This version benefits from the tighter sound on this album and is just a better version of the song. After this the bands starts to sound more experimental. “Trópusi Budapest” opens up with something sounding almost dub, morphing into a more upbeat surfy vibe. A cool experiment opening up their sound and adding variety. The experiments don’t stop here. “Andromeda” sounds a bit futuristic. Eighties futuristic that is, with its synths and more robotic vocals and the post-punk influences coming in around the two minute mark. Album closer "Pekingi Nyár" is what I would define as a pop punk ballad. A nice touch and the perfect album closer.
I do have two complaints that I do need to air. The first is the song order. The album is a bit front loaded with all the super catchy bangers opening the album. The experiments are really cool, but adding them to the end of the album means you leave the album with less energy than you enter it. Playing around with the song order could have prevented this from happening. My main complaint is that with only eight songs and twenty four minutes this album is just too short. It leaves me with a hunger for more. You would be right if you tell me that’s what the repeat button is for, or that there are five more albums for me to delve into, but that is not the same.
All in all this is a great album and I would really recommend you checking it out. If you value understanding the singer go for the English version, if you prefer a slightly better flow (and are okay with not understanding the singer) check out the Hungarian version.
