The highly anticipated album, Headspace, by metal-core band Issues was finally released on May 20, 2016. The album was off to a good start when they released two singles, “The Realest” and “COMA.” The new album is quite different from their last two, Black Diamonds and self-titled Issues, it involves a lot more clean vocals and a mixture of different genres.

The first track on the album is, “The Realest,” which open up with a slap bass solo then following that is Michael Bohn’s unclean vocals then cues Tyler Carter’s clean vocals. It was their first single released off the album. “Home Soon,” is the second track, drummer, Josh Manuel, stated that it was a big change from the track. The track was inspired by the band, Lydia’s album Illuminate.

Tyler Carter states that his favorite song from the album is the third track, “Lost-n-Found (On a Roll).” He wrote it about a kid he met in Atlanta at the Lost and Found Youth, a homeless shelter for LGBT youth. This song holds a lot of meaning to him and sends a great message out to everyone. The fourth track, “Yung & Dum,” which features Jon Langston, is definitely different from the other tracks. The song features a country-rock theme that is catchy. The fifth track, “Made to Last,” was Michael Bohn’s most challenging song to sing, it features a lot of Michael’s unclean vocals. The fifth track, “Flojo,” is in a shuffle vibe which involves some dubstep and hard rock instrumental.

“Hero,” which is the sixth track from the new album, it’s funky and has a lot of flair in it. “The song is just kind of about how people capitalize on the responsibilities that fans put on us. We respect that but we definitely like to keep our music responsible and not personally,” Tyler Carter told Vans Warped Tour.

“COMA,” the seventh track and the second single Issues released. Frontman, Tyler Carter, wrote it lyrically based on the movie If I Stay. The song is about someone who is in the hospital and possibly has the chance of dying and having to let the person go and living without them. “Rank Rider,” is about people who cheat on people in service.

“Blue Wall,” streams a really heavy topic in America. The topic is about police brutality towards people of color in America. Issues deserves a lot of respect for sharing their thoughts and standing with people of color through this song.

“Someone Who Does” can be compared to Issues’ “Princeton Ave” from their Black Diamonds EP. This sentimental song is about an absent or absurd father. This is a song that some fans can really relate to. “I Always Knew” is an instrumental track that introduces the final track, “Slow Me Down.” “I Always Knew” is a very soft and relaxing instrumental piece that consists of piano, drumming, and guitar melody. Guitarist, AJ, wrote “Slow Me Down” for his aunt who passed away a few years ago. AJ states that it has a very dark and spacey vibe and is one of his favorite tracks off the new album. This song is another sentimental song that fans can relate to. Just like their song, “Disappear,” from their self-titled album Issues.

Senior, Cordell Greer, a fan of Issues especially of frontman, Tyler Carter’s voice had a chance to listen to their new album. He loves their sound on Headspace. His favorite track is “Flojo” and least favorite is “Slow Me Down.” “They have improved a lot since their last album,” says Cordell. Mary Bogen, senior, is not a big listener of Issues but has listened to a couple of their songs and their new album. She thinks their new album has a lot of really catchy songs and thinks they did very well on the new album. Her favorite track is “Home Soon” and her least favorite is “The Realest.”
Overall, this album is definitely something everyone can enjoy listening to. It’s very different from their last albums with new genre experiments and vocal surprises. This album has a few home hitters for some fans. Headspace embraced more of Michael and Tyler’s clean vocals. They worked really hard on this album and succeed in making this album a hit. Issues never seems to disappoint and fans are excited to see what they have in stock in the future.