Going Grey is the fourth studio album by New Jersey punk rock band The Front Bottoms. The band consists of lead singer Brian Sella and drummer Mat Uychich.

Going Grey is The Front Bottoms’ second album under the Fueled by Ramen record label.

The album stands alone as a heavily produced and professional-sounding album, but loses the distinct punk sound that The Front Bottoms have maintained, even with their last album, Back on Top. The Front Bottoms have evolved from a raw, garage-band-like sound to a slick, heavily produced sound.

Sella delivers what might be his most fun vocal presentation of all his work. His eccentric vocals add plenty of depth to the song writing and make a lot of tracks come alive, especially toward the end of the album.

“Raining” and “Vacation Town” were the first two Going Grey singles released by The Front Bottoms and both songs have a tendency to grow up upon the listerner.

“Raining” opens with smooth strumming of an acoustic guitar and pulls you in with a sense of musical nostalgia. The easy acoustic, drums and vocals are reminiscent of the first time discovering the band.

“Vacation Town” brings the whole album together. Horns blaring, paired with a new electronic pop beat to accompany the early acoustic pieces, makes the song feel fresh. The track proves that blending new and old sounds can work.

“Peace Sign” is the strongest track on the album. Catchy chorus and smooth lyrical flow mesh seamlessly with personal and emotional lyrics that make this track one you can easily appreciate.

The track, “Grand Finale,” ironically the sixth song on the album, pulls the album out from a slow start. “Grand Finale” should have been where the album ended as every song after it gets weaker up to the final track.

The album anti-climactically wraps up with the track, “Ocean.” The song plays by the rules of the album and doesn’t do anything new or add anything interesting – a bland drop-off to end an otherwise inventive album.

Going Grey is true to The Front Bottoms’ orignial sound while remaining unique..

The slick and polished sound makes this album fairly tame for a mainstream audience. The hard edges of the band’s sound have been trimmed off in favor of a more pop anthem heavy album.

Current fans will like this album, but hate it at the same time, yet it is one that will intoduce many new fans to The Front Bottoms, almost as a gateway to modern punk rock.

Going Grey underwhelms,  leaving a lot to be desired, but it intrigues the listener with a new sound.  Unfortunately, that sound falls flat and the majority of the tracks on Going Grey are very easily skippable.

Overall, Going Grey is one of the band’s weakest projects to date. The album doesn’t take many risks yet still maintains a certain charm that only The Front Bottoms can deliver.