Not many albums can claim to hold the same sense of emotional release as Middle Kids’ second effort, Today We’re The Greatest.
Recently turning five years old, the album still sounds relevant and fresh as ever, thanks to Hannah Joy’s universal lyricism: she contemplates relationship breakdowns and long-held regrets (‘Some People Stay In Our Hearts Forever’, ‘Lost In Los Angeles’), but looks forward to the future with hope—the closer reflects on living in the present moment, and ‘Stacking Chairs’ is a gorgeous statement of intent to her partner: “When the wheels come off, I’ll be your spare/ when the party’s over, I’ll be stacking the chairs/ when the world turns on you, I will be there.”
‘Bad Neighbours’ makes for a quiet and stirring opener, with Joy backed by only strings and guitar, anxiously reflecting on the year she felt like a “disconnected red hoodie living for the highlight reel”. By the time the album closes with the inspirational title track, she seems to have rediscovered her spark: “Time is eroding, but I see the magic in the moment.”
Hope is an underrated word that I heard when I was younger
Before the anger
Now the pain is like a rope ‘round my hands
You’d understand if you’ve been hurt like I was
If you had bad neighbours
The year I forgot what a smile was
Even in the album’s most joyous and loud moments, Hannah is a reserved narrator, often too harsh on herself. ‘R U 4 Me?’ is a self-doubters anthem—“Can anyone hear this? I feel so far from the people that are nearest,” she sings with a can’t-sit-still urgency, a desperation to be accepted and loved. It’s like she’s cutting to the chase, asking simply “are you for me or against me?” It makes for one of the most exciting tracks on the record.
Other songs burn slow in comparison, like the brilliant ‘Summer Hill’, which begins slowly before roaring with an intense pulsating drive, aligning with its lyrical mantra of freedom and boundless possibility: “We can go out, we can go anywhere.” Even for one of the more straightforward sentiments on the album, the music matches this longing perfectly.
Rounding out Side B is a pair of perhaps the most joyous Middle Kids tracks ever: ‘Run With You’, an energetic romance ballad, and ‘I Don’t Care’… good heavens this song rules. One of the simplest and most repetitive hooks you’ve ever heard (“I don’t fucking care, I gotta do what I want to”), but it’s not fatiguing—you believe it every time the sentence leaves Joy’s mouth. Addictive, it’s an anthem you’ll only fall in love with when you NEED to hear it. It feels like an earned listen—when life gets you down, entrust in the Kids to lift your spirits.
‘Stacking Chairs’ is the real star of the track listing, and the song that will stick with you the most. I’m a sucker for love songs that don’t scream romance—that sort of authentic love that you don’t hear reflected much in commercial pop. (See also: “Just let me be the one that keeps track of the moles on your back”, from Los Campesinos!) The simple act of packing up after a party with your partner, as an expression of your love, is one of the most beautiful sentiments I’ve heard in a modern love song.
Despite releasing in the throes of lockdowns, Today We’re The Greatest doesn’t carry any pandemic baggage. Relatable and charming, it gets better the more you listen and the more you make mistakes, lose and love. It’s an album about being messy, without compromising its often delicate sounds. Five years later, it’s an essential Australian record from the 2020s so far.
Listen to Today We’re The Greatest on streaming, or buy the album on Bandcamp here.
