The Protagonist - "All The Memories From THe Underground Classroom" (7/10)

Review Date: 03/11/2024

Ah, Sonic4's first album. I met him one month after this album's release. It's been so long since then.
For a first album, I will cut him some slack. Despite the bad audio quality, the album is well-executed.

The tracks are mostly ambient, and sometimes noisy and disturbing. It's almost as if you're being dragged from one scene to another without knowing what happened in between them. The album is inspired from The Caretaker's Selected Memories From The Haunted Ballroom. "Why Are You Haunting Me", "Living In A Dream", "From Out Of Nowhere," "Wonderful Night With You", "Disproven", "September 2021", and "Thanks" are direct references to The Caretaker, just to name a few.

The distortions were quite creative for a beginner. "Burning Rage" sounds harsh, almost like a noise track. "Drowning Rave" sounds like the remnants of song that was never finished. "From Out Of Nowhere" sounds straight out of a horror movie. The low pitched vocal of the singer is combined with the sounds of students screaming in the background. "The Examination Week" is the recorded sound of a creaky chair. Who would've thought of including that in their album? "Rusty Stadium" sounds like a catchy old song that was buried six feet deep. "My One Desire" sounds demonic, makes me feel like a cult is chanting to summon a demon. "September 2021" is horrifying. It's a jump scare to the listener, as if all the rage that built up over time were unleashed at once. There is a mysterious feel to "The Underground Classroom" two. I like it. And finally, the album ends with a reverberated song about a breakup. I do not know the context behind "Untitled", but it probably makes sense to Sonic the most because this album is a personal collection of his memories throughout 8th grade.