There’s a constant air of tension running through the latest release from Yung. As its title suggests, Ongoing Dispute is a record that shares stories of pain and hardship through the lens of the everyday person. Explorations on what it is to live in these strange times are explored with equal weight and catharsis. The Danish five-piece came out with their sophomore album half a decade after their debut record A Youthful Dream which raised a few questions from their fans. But looking at the final product it’s clear that such a time was necessary to craft this album. Each of the nine tracks shares a story with its own gravitas, and the sonic arrangements that Yung has crafted around them are equal parts explosive and sympathetic.
“Autobiography” is rife with the rumbling confusion of someone trying to urge their self-absorbed friend who’s to see the error in their ways. Vocalist Mikkel Holm Silkjær pleads with an urgency that’s echoed by the wailing riffs, desperately picking up the pieces of a friendship thrown away. “Lust and Learning” glides with a somber and introspective melody, in a song that reflects the plight of the working individual as they ponder through their mundane life. They find themselves growing old and losing their dreams along the way, questioning if everything was worth it all along. Through these songs Yung weaves through the sounds of pop and alt-rock, along with several shades of new wave punk. Carefully picking a good platform for the story at hand, and this diversity has paid off very well for them.
Like in “Dismantled”, where the band adapts a menacing slow-burn with dark riffs akin to Black Sabbath. All used in service to a song that shares musings from a deeply distraught soul. “Above Water” has a thick slab of grungy guitars and earth-shattering percussion to accompany Silkjær’s frustration as he talks about someone falling from grace despite all of the hardship they’ve experienced in life. The band describes it as “an ode to individuals taking a stand against injustice and structures in society which oppose equality”, which could very well be the entire thesis of the album.
Philosophical, topical and brutally honest. Yung didn’t pull any punches or shy away from the world’s ever growing complex issues in the making of this record. “Ongoing Dispute” is a mirror of our world right now, and the band has boldly lent their voice and superb craftsmanship in the making of this wonderful record.