‘Home of the Strange’ by Young the Giant 9 out of 10

Alex Kirshner ’18
THE ROUNDUP

The Southern California-based band Young the Giant released their third album, entitled “Home of the Strange”, on August 12, 2016, after much anticipation and build up.

The band released the first official song from the album, “Something to Believe in”, on May 10, after the release of “Amerika” on April 19, which served as an announcement track for their album.

Young the Giant stuck to their roots as a percussion-based band, but still branched out and experimented with more punk rock tunes such as “Jungle Youth,” which includes a heavy guitar riff and maniacal laughter towards the end.

They also experimented with more melodic tunes, such as “Titus was Born,” which features more of an acoustic accompaniment, as opposed to their typical electric and percussionist style.

Each member of the band is a first generation or zero generation immigrant, and their immigrant background is depicted in various ways throughout the album.

The album cover includes various flags and people, which symbolizes people of different nationalities coming together to form a “Home of the Strange”.

Furthermore, one of the pre-released songs, “Amerika,” speaks about the American dream, as evidenced by the opening lines, “I’ve arrived / With gold in my eyes,” and continues in the chorus with, “Always talking ‘bout one day / in Amerika.”

The only thing holding this album back from being a ten out of ten was that a couple of the songs, such as “Mr. Know it All” and “Home of the Strange,” lacked in originality and seemed to be a continuation of their previous works.

While many of the songs on the album do not stray too far from their “typical” alternative sound, Young the Giant was able to successfully mix in a variety of melodic tunes that show the band’s maturation and growth from their first album in 2011. This variation and evolution into a more complete band is why “Home of the Strange” is arguably the band’s best project yet.