337:. So once the album is done with the studio mixes, we already have demos going. I don’t think it’s been affected that much." However, during the process they decided they wanted to change their approach both with how they presented themselves as a band and how they recorded their tracks: "We have a certain aura of obfuscation about identity, so the idea of doing that physically was really cool, and we wanted to present Ultrapop as big and bombastically superheroic as possible."
596:, Chris Bryton declared that "Nothing is ever as it seems with the Armed, and Ultrapop is another piece of their mystique. The band's myth and the unity behind it is something that comes out in the spirit and strength of their music, where every part is as important as the other in order to experience the big picture and its full force. Ultrapop is a beautiful storm, dense, monstrous, vital, and aching to break free."
525:
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611:, Ben Salmon felt that "What’s most impressive about ULTRAPOP is not necessarily the killer riffs, the pummeling rhythms or the plentiful melodies, though all of those are consistently thrilling. What’s most impressive is the way this band brings together different, disparate styles in a way that sounds seamless and natural and new, even if others have done it before." Writing for
633:, Robin Ferris noted that "This definitely isn't for everyone, and the production and mixing is particularly un-inviting this time around. ... But the sheer tunefulness in the songs beneath it all is actually incredibly heartwarming, and something that deserves as much attention from the adventurous indie listener as it currently gets from the rock and metal gatekeeping elite."
322:, band vocalist/lyricist Cara Drolshagen claimed "he’s a genius who understands the math behind the music, and the opportunity to reconfigure its numbers in new ways, to find different solutions." With Ballou taking on an executive role, Drolshagen noted that he was still heavily involved with the band and "that hasn't changed" with regards to his contributions.
590:, Tim Morton stated that "it’s addictive to see where the record goes next. While most hardcore bands are adamant about getting heavier, The Armed are going poppier and, ultimately, weirder, often in the space of one verse. ... Sure, it’s not something you’re going to dip in and out of on a whim, but when you’re in, you won’t want to leave." At
617:, Evan Minkser claimed that the album "doesn’t hurt that their newfound transparency makes the music feel refreshingly human and relatable. Gains-obsessed beefcakes prodding the tropes and social expectations of heavy music by making an extremely heavy album is the Armed doing what the Armed do best—leading with their performative instincts."
584:'s James Christopher Monger said "Ultrapop sees the anonymous and anachronistic Detroit-based collective deliver a dizzying 12-song set that pairs glitchy and discordant soundscapes and adenoid-tearing vocals with melodies that run the gamut from apocalyptic to downright majestic." Reviewing the album for
626:
wrote that "This music is fast and hard, but there are fewer risks than it might at first seem. Those hoping for the band to push themselves in a new direction are going to be slightly disappointed, while those who have vibed with this collective since day one will likely appreciate ULTRAPOP for what
31:
331:, band member Adam Valley revealed that many of the songs on the album had been written during the sessions for their previous album: "We never stop writing, songs from Ultrapop were also written during
605:, Konstantinos Pappis stated that the album "doesn’t so much push the boundaries of pop and heavy music as much as it heats them into vapor, resulting in an album equal parts euphoric and chaotic." In
303:
on April 16, 2021, two singles were released. "All
Futures", the first single, was released on February 4, and "Average Death" was released on 2 March.
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577:, a review aggregation website that assigns normalised ratings from 1–100, awarded a score of 84, indicating "universal acclaim".
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1368:"The Armed take no prisoners on the equally brtual and melodic Ultrapop | The Line of Best Fit"
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1425:
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484:
306:
The album was co-produced by Dan Greene and Ben
Chisholm, an established collaborator with
8:
1483:
1164:"The Armed 'ULTRAPOP' Interview: Adam Valley and Clark Huge On Their Diet & Workouts"
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1310:"The Armed Make Themselves Known in a Big Way on 'ULTRAPOP' | Exclaim!"
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120:
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1138:"Interview: The Armed's Cara Drolshagen Talks New Album 'ULTRAPOP'"
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1397:"The Armed Meld Beauty and Brutality on Ultrapop | Paste Magazine"
620:
In a slightly more reserved opinion of the album, Tim Sentz at
627:
it is – another album by The Armed." Reviewing the album for
38:
1529:
879:
was performed by The Armed. The following is taken from the
1016:"The Armed Announce New Album Ultrapop, Share Song: Listen"
30:
357:
into their "glitchy and discordant" sound. It also nears
1281:"Album Review: The Armed – Ultrapop | Beats Per Minute"
1112:"Album Review: The Armed, 'Ultrapop' | Our Culture Mag"
1044:"Watch the Armed's Video for New Song "Average Death""
361:, yielding the band's closest lean toward the genre.
1482:
Stasis, Spyros; Poscic, Antonio (December 3, 2021).
1426:"The Armed: Ultrapop Album Review | Pitchfork Media"
310:. The executive producer was long-time collaborator
1079:, share "All Futures" & live performance video"
314:. The album is their first release with the label
655:
1628:
1217:
1215:
1339:"Album review: The Armed – Ultrapop | Kerrang!"
1195:"Ultrapop - The Armed | Songs, Review, Credits"
1068:
1066:
969:Zach Weeks – mixing and assistant engineer
966:Ben Chisholm – co-producer and co-engineer
318:. Talking about Chisholm in an interview with
279:is the fourth studio album from the anonymous
1545:
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963:Dan Greene – co-producer and co-engineer
571:was released to positive critical reception.
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1193:Monger, James Christopher (April 16, 2021).
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1252:"Critic Reviews for ULTRAPOP | Metacritic"
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975:Mikhail Marinas – additional engineer
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1647:Post-hardcore albums by American artists
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1224:"The Armed: Ultrapop | Spectrum Culture"
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1110:Pappis, Konstantinos (April 20, 2021).
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857:"The Music Becomes a Skull" (featuring
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1463:from the original on December 1, 2021
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1041:
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1484:"The 20 Best Metal Albums of 2021"
1136:Pizolla, Thomas (April 16, 2021).
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1014:Minsker, Evan (February 4, 2021).
18:2021 studio album by The Armed
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1222:Dempsey, Colin (April 16, 2021).
692:The 20 Best Metal Albums of 2021
659:
504:
418:
287:, released on April 16, 2021, by
1424:Minsker, Evan (April 16, 2021).
1366:Ferris, Robin (April 14, 2021).
1308:Bryson, Chris (April 13, 2021).
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1337:Morton, Luke (April 16, 2021).
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1395:Salmon, Ben (April 16, 2021).
1075:"The Armed announce new album
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580:Amongst the positive reviews,
340:
1:
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1279:Sentz, Tim (April 16, 2021).
1000:
1451:"The 50 Best Albums of 2021"
1162:Cohen, Ian (April 8, 2021).
871:
636:
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1042:Yoo, Noah (March 2, 2021).
673:The 50 Best Albums of 2021
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242:Released: February 4, 2021
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299:Prior to the release of
260:Released: March 31, 2021
54:April 16, 2021
251:Released: March 2, 2021
207:Adult Swim Festival '21
824:"Where Man Knows Want"
295:Background and release
1459:. November 29, 2021.
813:"Faith in Medication"
769:"A Life So Wonderful"
325:In an interview with
1662:Sargent House albums
1372:thelineofbestfit.com
892:Additional musicians
630:The Line of Best Fit
485:The Line of Best Fit
370:Professional ratings
349:, the Armed inject "
1228:spectrumculture.com
1142:newoisemagazine.com
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1285:beatsperminute.com
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645:on year-end lists
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365:Critical reception
320:New Noise Magazine
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1401:pastemagazine.com
1116:ourculturemag.com
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835:"Real Folk Blues"
758:"Masunaga Vapors"
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1615:Ft. Frank Turner
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558:Spectrum Culture
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355:experimental pop
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1522:. 2021. SH 231.
1518:(Media notes).
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802:"Average Death"
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747:"All Futures"
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715:track listing
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289:Sargent House
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281:post-hardcore
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239:"All Futures"
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1498:. Retrieved
1487:
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1467:November 30,
1465:. Retrieved
1454:
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1433:. Retrieved
1429:
1404:. Retrieved
1400:
1375:. Retrieved
1371:
1346:. Retrieved
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1317:. Retrieved
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1288:. Retrieved
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1259:. Retrieved
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1231:. Retrieved
1227:
1202:. Retrieved
1199:allmusic.com
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1171:. Retrieved
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978:
954:
953:
948:
945:Adam Vallely
939:Ben Chisholm
931:Brian Wolski
925:Andy Pitcher
903:Mark Lanegan
891:
890:
876:
875:
859:Mark Lanegan
712:
685:
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650:Publication
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599:Writing for
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168:Ben Chisholm
39:Studio album
15:
1637:2021 albums
1500:December 3,
1343:kerrang.com
935:Kurt Ballou
922:Trevor Naud
791:"Big Shell"
341:Composition
312:Kurt Ballou
283:collective
1631:Categories
1489:PopMatters
1314:exclaim.ca
1001:References
955:Production
942:Zach Weeks
918:Eva Spence
913:Ben Koller
736:"Ultrapop"
687:PopMatters
574:Metacritic
389:Metacritic
359:noise rock
351:maximalist
179:chronology
165:Dan Greene
121:noise rock
58:2021-04-16
1583:Only Love
1561:The Armed
1090:April 29,
1055:April 26,
1049:Pitchfork
1027:April 26,
1021:Pitchfork
985:The Armed
883:release.
881:LP record
872:Personnel
637:Accolades
614:Pitchfork
547:Pitchfork
334:Only Love
328:Stereogum
285:The Armed
228:Ultrapop
190:Only Love
177:The Armed
111:post-punk
101:Metalcore
44:The Armed
1590:Ultrapop
1576:Untitled
1516:Ultrapop
1494:Archived
1461:Archived
1204:July 24,
1173:July 28,
1147:July 28,
1077:Ultrapop
877:Ultrapop
713:Ultrapop
643:Ultrapop
593:Exclaim!
587:Kerrang!
582:AllMusic
569:Ultrapop
473:Kerrang!
461:Exclaim!
412:AllMusic
347:Ultrapop
301:Ultrapop
276:Ultrapop
199:Ultrapop
158:Producer
51:Released
41: by
24:Ultrapop
1607:Singles
1435:May 11,
1406:May 11,
1377:May 11,
1348:May 11,
1319:May 11,
1290:May 11,
1261:May 11,
1233:May 13,
1121:May 11,
224:Singles
210:(2022)
203:(2021)
194:(2018)
56: (
992:
980:Design
728:Length
552:8.2/10
540:8.6/10
406:Rating
403:Source
393:84/100
383:Rating
380:Source
129:Length
85:LA Sum
66:Studio
1456:Paste
725:Title
668:Paste
656:Rank
653:List
608:Paste
535:Paste
345:With
226:from
146:Label
94:Genre
1502:2021
1469:2021
1437:2021
1408:2021
1379:2021
1350:2021
1321:2021
1292:2021
1263:2021
1235:2021
1206:2021
1175:2021
1149:2021
1123:2021
1092:2021
1057:2021
1029:2021
864:2:38
849:3:44
838:3:38
827:2:56
816:3:46
805:4:31
794:3:17
783:2:53
772:3:07
761:2:30
750:3:04
739:2:43
660:Ref.
490:8/10
466:9/10
854:12.
843:11.
832:10.
721:No.
562:80%
478:4/5
454:71%
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