Band:	Unto Others
Album:	Never, Neverland
Style:	Heavy metal, Gothic rock
Release date:	September 20, 2024
A review by:	omne metallum

01. Butterfly
02. Momma Likes The Door Closed
03. Angel Of The Night
04. Suicide Today
05. Sunshine
06. Glass Slippers
07. Fame
08. When The Kids Get Caught
09. Flatline
10. Time Goes On
11. Cold World
12. I Am The Light
13. Farewell...
14. Raigeki 雷撃
15. Hoops
16. Never, Neverland
17. Pet Sematary [Ramones cover] [bonus]

Take my hand. 

The law of diminishing returns suggests that the quality or quantity of output drops with each new iteration, a trend that only goes downwards. With Unto Others' third album Never, Neverland containing a whopping seventeen tracks, you know you won't have to worry about the quantity of their output dropping. While not a bad album, Never, Neverland slides further down the quality slope from their previous output, not near their prior peak, but also far from skidding out at the bottom of the hill. 

At seventeen tracks (if you grab the deluxe edition), Unto Others would appear to have either hit an oil well of creativity, or are throwing everything they have against the wall to see what sticks; when you listen to Never, Neverland you realise the problem is a mixture of both. For every good idea they have, there are two or three that are either lacking a few parts, or push an underwhelming idea to the forefront. This mix results in an album that has great moments, middling moments and a lot of filler. 

When the band get it right, they add to an already strong collection of classics they are amassing for themselves; opening song "Butterfly" sounds like a sonic continuation from Strength. It is ironic, then, that when the following "Momma Likes The Door Closed" hit, that I had to double-check that I was still listening to the same album, given the jarring turn to frenzied punk energy the band unleash; this sharp turn away from expectation does give Never, Neverland character, and another of its strong moments in "Flatline". 

The unexpected (and oddly named) "Hoops" is a captivating instrumental that shows the band doesn't need their dour humour to sell you on their music (though Franco's range and delivery remains one of their strengths). That isn't to say that the morbid humour isn't still present, with "Suicide Today" being dark, enjoyable fun. Alongside the hard to pronounce "Raigeki 雷撃" and "Fame", these are songs that will rank amongst Unto Others' best work. 

Thanks to the sheer weight of filler, however, it pulls the rest of Never, Neverland downhill. Best typified by the likes of "Cold World" and "When Kids Get Caught", too much time on the album is given over to tracks that seem like cookie-cutter offerings that lack anything of real note; sure Silva and Franco have some good guitar work on "Cold World", but it's wasted on a song that is otherwise staid and unremarkable. While the record isn't performed badly (conversely, the band are still on top form in that department), they can't breathe life into lifeless songwriting, which is the main problem on Never, Neverland. 

Sometimes less is more, and you get the feeling with some editing and slimming down of the record, Never, Neverland would flow a lot better than it does. Case in point is the pointless inclusion of a cover track in "Pet Semetary". Now, I love me some Ramones, so, on paper, the haunting vibes of "Pet Semetary" should be an ideal cover for this band, but much like the rest of the album, the idea is there, and yet Unto Others just can't translate it well to record, and the track ultimately just adds to the runtime rather than the enjoyment. 

Aside from being good advice about which theme parks to avoid visiting without adult supervision, Never, Neverland is an album of potential and a good case that releasing only some of your ideas, rather than all of your ideas, can make for a better product overall.