This is the fifth album of Waterparks’ career and as with FANDOM, they have made another rookie mistake someone left the caps lock on again. Terrible joke out of the way, INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY is far from your rookie mistake as frontman Awsten Knight surprises us with new ideas and an unexpected exploration of religion. The 31-year-old delves into celebrity and its similarities to religious worship revealing a whole new side that the singer previously hadn’t been so open about, religious guilt.
The album’s opening track STAR FUCKER tackles issues of celebrity culture over the sound of an upbeat, pop-filled guitar and electronics with sounds of people wanting to be in proximity to fame joking “Jesus Christ won’t text me back,” then it just cuts off. At first, you may think your speakers are on the blink but then REAL SUPER DARK comes blaring in with Knight employing screamed and growled vocals more akin to those used on the 2020 demo Lemonade. The track delves into elements of rap with a slight Early Eminem feel. Real Super Dark brings the silly and macabre together as he dives into a new kind of lyrical mash-up for the band, all coming together with almost harsh electronics, screamed vocals, and that inevitable Waterparks catchy chorus.
Musically there is a definite shift from their past releases though there are some similarities to the previous album Greatest Hits. However, that record felt a little bloated with 17 tracks whereas Intellectual Property is more condensed to 11 more succinct tracks. In terms of personality, this still feels very Waterparks. Knight’s joyful personality shines throughout from the infectiously heavy RITUAL again exploring those religious comparisons featuring layered screams from Vincente Void of Darke Complex, to the far less intense 2 BEST FRIENDS which feels more like the band from their earlier days. This is just a short but sweet song about friendship, seemingly a reference to fellow members Geoff Wigington and Otto Wood helping the frontman traverse a difficult relationship.
However, previously released singles FUNERAL GRAY and BRAINWASHED are the most like their previous work, but that makes sense as they also want to draw in their older fans as well as bringing in the new. They are both just pure pop-rock tunes and have already racked up millions of streams which is very impressive. Though for argument’s sake, you could say these types of songs are what started the band and are bread and butter to them at this point so it’s hardly surprising they threw a couple in the mix.
This is an album that swerves in a new direction whilst simultaneously combining the band’s eras together. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY is both an excellent exploration of one of rock’s most charismatic stars and another irresistible addition to a discography that always triumphs in bringing something fresh and interesting to the fore. Waterparks show that rock doesn’t have to have a definitive sound with their captivating anthems and combination of pop-punk with hip-hop production.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY released on the 14th of April through Fueled By Ramen. The album is available on all streaming sites with exclusive Vinyl or Cassette versions available on their website.
