Release Date: October 29, 2021 Genre: Indie Pop, Pop Rock, Pop Punk Label: Fearless Records American Teeth -the musical alter ego of Elijah Noll- has announced his debut full-length album, We Should Be Having Fun, for release this Friday. Noll is originally from Portland, Maine, but currently based out of Los Angeles that was a result to help push his career to where he has got it to now. After a slew of singles over the last year or so that have garnered well over two million streams collectively, American Teeth is ready to unleash his full might into the world with the help of Fearless Records. The majority of We Should Be Having Fun was produced by Colin Brittain. Brittian is best known for working with artists and bands such as All Time Low, A Day To Remember, ONE OK ROCK, Papa Roach, and Sueco, to name a few. Additionally, a few other tracks were co-produced by Dwilly, Alex Gaskath, and Keith Varon. American Teeth's enthralling twelve-track debut album is nothing from traditional. The album blends various elements of pop, rock, folk, and pop-punk into one amalgamated sound -nothing that hasn't been done in music before. Nevertheless, American Teeth utilizes his songwriting skills to his fullest extent to make you believe that this particular blend of sounds was his own creation over these twelve tracks. While all but one song on We Should Be Having Fun are under the three-minute mark, these songs breeze by not because they're short but because they're irresistible from front to back. When something is fun and lovable, you want more, and I want more tracks from American Teeth immediately! I have a sure feeling We Should Be Having Fun will launch American Teeth into the stratosphere, and he'll be a household name in no time. We Should Be Having Fun starts with the infectious number "Love Myself." "Love Myself" is an endless catchy song with a pop-punk feel infused with a dose of fun with its elements of pop. "One Of Those Days" follows shortly after. "One Of Those Days" is a heavier one lyrically. The track is a surrender to a bad day and tackles the acceptance you sometimes have to let yourself feel bad as a way to get through it. "Tongue" -one of the album's more recent singles- is a fun piece placed on the record's tracklist. It's got this nostalgic emo feel to it with its folky, pop-infused sound. Also, the high energy from American Teeth brings something else to the song, lifting it further. The song's bridge features a phenomenal piano arrangement that's a complete 180, and it initially caught me off guard. "Fix You" was formerly released as a double single alongside "E-Girl," at the beginning of the year. So I find it pretty surprising that "E-Girl" does not appear on We Should Be Having Fun. "Fix You" was co-produced and co-written by All Time Low frontman Alex Gaskath, and interestingly enough, features Gaskarth on guitar. "Fix You," and the adjacent single "E-Girl," both detail two different points of a previous relationship Noll had that he said was "Very beautiful but also extremely tough at times." "Barred Out" is a full-fledged pop-punk number, that with the help of Cameron Walker-Wright of the pop band TWIN XL, is yet another fun number. Personally, I find "Barred Out" as one of the catchiest tracks on the entire album. However, lyrically, the track is about ending a relationship and wondering if you made the right decision to do so, as the emotions of the aftermath are so strong after the breakup that you want to numb them out completely. There's also an acoustic version of the track kicking around on streaming services if that's something you fancy. The most recent single, "Kickflip," tackles a post-breakup of Noll's when he was in a bit of a rut looking for things to do to help him get out of it. So ultimately, he turned to skateboarding. One of the only things he could manage to do in the middle of the pandemic lockdowns.
The album's ninth track, "Gonna Be Okay," is the album's only singular acoustic track and is an emotional piece written straight from the heart. "Gonna Be Okay" is another track about getting out of those bad days you may have and that all these feelings will eventually go away, no matter the cause. Following is the most collaborative track on the album, "SICK." The song features the up-and-coming talents of phem and DE'WAYNE -who Noll is a fan of both artists, so it was a lot of fun for him to collab with the two artists for the track. "SICK" is a celebration of acceptance of Noll's bad habits and owning himself to the fullest extent he possibly can. The final two tracks that close out We Should Be Having Fun are "I'm A Wave" and "To Be Loved." Both tracks are diverse and bring something different to the album in their own right. First, "I'm A Wave" is backed by a hip-hop style beat and along with the vocal effects and singing style of American Teeth on the song, it's got an emo-rap vibe to it. However, the track is huge when it comes to terms of the instruments. It pulls from everywhere this album has gone. It's got the acoustic guitars, heart-shaking bass, and elements of pop, that make this track no different than the others while somehow still being a unique musical piece on the album. The final track, "To Be Loved," is a slow, dark-sounding track. Its slow tempo and minimalistic approach drives the track. "To Be Loved" is practically only Noll singing over a methodical, slow-changing bass line. Furthermore, there is some spacey synth paired along some strings on the track that makes this track atmospheric, grim, and intriguingly immense.
