ALBUM REVIEW: Avril Lavigne finds pop-punk stride on ‘Love Sux’

Avril Lavigne, Love Sux, Avril Lavigne Love Sux

Avril Lavigne, “Love Sux.”

In some ways, the seventh album by Avril Lavigne is a return to the Canadian pop-rocker’s roots. In others, it’s finally reaching the territory she’s strived for from the start. Lavigne has always existed adjacent to the pop-punk moniker, but often, that classification was based on style over substance. Her biggest hits have ranged from catchy pop-rock to piano-driven power ballads, at times even wading deeper into pop waters. While her albums have featured tracks with pop-punk influences, the singer has never released a complete work of punk-inspired material—until now.

Love Sux
Avril Lavigne
DTA, Feb. 25
9/10

For Love Sux, Avril Lavigne achieves this with a star-studded team from blink-182’s Travis Barker and Mark Hoppus to Machine Gun Kelly with Goldfinger’s John Feldman at the helm. The resulting album is a faithful ode to the best of mid-aughts pop-punk. It’s her most cohesive work since 2004’s Under My Skin. The tracks are quick, punchy and fun. Love Sux doesn’t require a deep analysis; it’s just a solid record to put on and crank up. That’s not to say there aren’t poignant moments, but as a whole it’s meant to be accessible and not take itself too seriously. In the truest of pop-punk form, the dozen tracks clock in at just over a half hour.



The record opens with amplifier buzz and fuzz-tone distorted riffs of “Cannonball.” It’s not heavy, per se, but it’s certainly energetic and guitar-driven. The urgent verse flows into the anthemic chorus, moving from bouncy to fist-pumping and back. The majority of the record is built on this foundation, with little added production, synths or programming. “Bois Lie” recruits the oft-debated Machine Gun Kelly. It’s a well-executed rocker that falls somewhere in the territory of New Found Glory and Simple Plan. MGK and Lavigne complement each other surprisingly well in one of the album’s more memorable moments.

A pair of singles best showcase Lavigne’s ability to deliver a radio-ready pop rock song with a big chorus. The drumming by blink-182’s Barker is quickly familiar, adding to the punchiness, while blackbear adds a verse and additional harmonies on “Love It When You Hate Me.” The oddity of Love Sux is that Avril Lavigne matured her sound by becoming, well, immature. She’s at her best when she doesn’t take herself too seriously, delivering kiss-off anthems about love gone wrong.

“Are we having fun yet?/ Tell me are we done yet?” Lavigne asks in the opening moments of the title track. She laments another breakup on the song, with the help of driving percussion and a hefty helping of guitar riffs. “Kiss Me Like The World Is Ending” adds some extra punch with a soaring, fist-pumping chorus. Just when it seems like the album might be heading too far in one direction, things change up entirely with dark acoustic ballad “Avalanche.” The track showcases Lavigne’s matured vocals and delivery. The pace picks back up for the mid-tempo anthemic rocker “Deja vu.”



Lavigne’s “F.U.” sounds a bit like a distant cousin of one of her earliest punk-inspired tracks, “He Wasn’t.” Not surprisingly, the track laments a dysfunctional relationship. “All I Wanted” recruits another blink-182 vet in Mark Hoppus on vocals. The two match up well on the nostalgic track that harkens back to the best days of pop-punk’s heyday. Hoppus and Lavigne trade lines before coming together to harmonize on the chorus.



“Dare To Love Me” is one of the more dynamic tracks here, bouncing between acoustic ballad and anthemic power ballad, while “Break of A Heartache” brings the record home on a hard-rocking note.

Love Sux succeeds in its simplicity. It encompasses everything in which Avril Lavigne excels and packages it into a memorable final product.

Follow writer Mike DeWald at Twitter.com/mike_dewald.

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