Anti Social Money Ballads plays like a course correction—an album born out of frustration with restraint and expectation. Where Hyeenas’ debut LP leaned heavily into conventional metalcore structures, often sanding down the harsher, punk-driven edges hinted at on their earlier EP, this record feels far less interested in cohesion or comfort. Instead, Hyeenas lean into abrasion, instability, and genre friction, even when it means the album sounds volatile or unresolved. It’s messier, louder in spirit, and much closer to the band’s true instincts.

From the outset, the scale feels larger and more confrontational. Tracks like “Omnipotent” arrive with suffocating low-end, jagged guitar tones, and an atmosphere that feels openly hostile rather than controlled. The bass, already a defining element of the band’s sound, is pushed further into murky, oppressive territory, giving the album its most genuinely massive moments. Keith Holluk’s vocals remain the emotional core, but here they feel less like a casualty of production choices and more like part of the intent. The distortion, layering, and occasional burial of his voice now read as anxiety-driven texture—uneven, uncomfortable, and abrasive by design—even if the execution doesn’t always land perfectly.

That said, not all of the debut’s issues have been fully exorcised. The production is still polarizing, especially when it comes to the drums. While they’re more forward in the mix than before, they often feel stiff and underpowered, lacking the physical impact needed to anchor the band’s heaviest ideas. At times, the percussion feels more like a programmed stand-in than a driving force, which becomes most noticeable during faster or more chaotic sections. When Hyeenas slow things down and let riffs crawl and collapse under their own weight, the songs hit hard—but moments that demand speed or explosiveness can expose the same structural fragility that plagued the debut.

Where Anti Social Money Ballads truly separates itself is in its ambition. The band isn’t just flirting with experimentation—they’re actively tearing at genre boundaries. Acoustic passages, glitchy electronics, trap-influenced beats, and synth-heavy detours weave throughout the record, sometimes clashing violently, sometimes locking into something compelling. Songs like “Subconsciously” and “Doom Scroll” feel like turning points, where the band finally starts to balance chaos with intent, allowing experimentation to enhance the songwriting rather than overwhelm it. The back half of the album, in particular, feels more focused, hinting that Hyeenas are learning how to control their volatility instead of being consumed by it.

Compared to the debut, Anti Social Money Ballads feels less like an unfinished idea and more like a reckless blueprint. It’s still uneven, still plagued by questionable production choices, and still searching for a fully realized identity—but it’s also bolder, stranger, and far more personal. Where the debut left frustration because it felt constrained, this record leaves curiosity because it feels like Hyeenas are standing on the edge of something genuinely distinctive. They haven’t fully arrived yet, but they’ve clearly stopped playing by anyone else’s rules, and that makes Anti Social Money Ballads a meaningful and necessary step forward.