For the past 27 years and counting, Alkaline Trio has proudly claimed a seat at the round table of all things Punk, Pop-Punk, and beyond. Formed in the late 1990s, their brand of buoyant pessimism, coupled with a healthy dose of heart-warming sarcasm, placed their discography – featuring seminal recordings such as 1998’s Goddamnit, 2000’s Maybe I’ll Catch Fire, and 2003’s Good Mourning – into the hands of a joyfully downtrodden generation.
But the past six years have only upped the ante in a world spinning violently out of control. And, much like many global citizens, this time has left a lasting imprint on the members of Alkaline Trio. Vocalist/Guitarist Matt Skiba, who spent 2015-2022 celebrating all the goofy things with Blink-182, reclaimed his full-time status within the band, while Drummer Derek Grant, unfortunately, opted to make his exit as their tenth album – Blood, Hair, and Eyeballs, which arrives on Friday, January 26, 2024, via Rise Records – was being mixed. (Long-time friend Atom Willard – who has previously worked with everyone from Rocket From the Crypt to Against Me! – has already stepped behind the vacated kit.)
Shocking to no one, their tenth full-length is a reflection of the time in which its lyrical content marinated within the minds of its creators: Skiba, Vocalist/Bassist Dan Andriano, and Grant. With the assistance of Grammy Award-winning Producer Cameron Webb (Motörhead, Silverstein), the three set out to summon new magic and, in doing so, recaptured the masterful guitarwork of albums such as 2005’s Crimson alongside the wistful suffering of 2008’s Agony & Irony.
The first with the Trio’s new Rise Records partnership, the 11-song Blood, Hair, and Eyeballs sees Alkaline Trio succeeding at dredging intelligent kernels from the garbage dump of 2020-2023. There are the moments that dare to swim amid the caustic cauldron (“Hot For Preacher,” “Break,” “Teenage Heart”), skipping to the beat of humanity’s destructive cowardice. No less a study of the Holocene, “Bad Time” and Andriano-fronted “Versions of You” are indicative of the cracks in humanity right here, right now.
Quick to acknowledge that we are all imperfect beings (“Scars”), they simultaneously poo-poo humanity while offering an extended hand (“Shake With Me”). From “Hinterlude” to the album’s titular track, “Blood, Hair, and Eyeballs,” Alkaline Trio takes us into the barren backyard swimming pools of the past to jettison the pain, be it from doomed romance/society (“Meet Me”) or a wonky skateboard.
As the album mourns both the present and the past (“Broken Down in a Time Machine”), there is a hefty weight placed on its unspoken questions (“Teenage Heart”). For this, Blood, Hair, and Eyeballs is a collection that weighs heavy long after Andriano and Skiba’s last melodies fade. It is, not so simply put, a sardonic spell painted in Crayola rainbows, an entirely on-brand experience that mates doomsaying with hip-swaying.
But please do not misunderstand: this is not an apocalyptic opera of boohoos. Like its predecessors, it is a testament to the consistency of Alkaline Trio’s silky gloom, giddy doom, and a poisonous kiss of raw emotion. Both visually inspired and orchestrated with an eye to the past, it simultaneously straddles multiple headspaces despite the pinheaded atmosphere into which it will be received. For this, Cryptic Rock gives Blood, Hair, and Eyeballs 5 out of 5 stars.
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