Bert McCraken from The Used Goes Pop with robbietheused

robbietheused self titled lp art — Photo Credit: Ryan Muirhead (@ryanmuirhead)

The Used’s frontman Bert McCracken released his self-titled debut album under his solo project, robbietheused, on October 25 via Big Noise Records. He has been teasing fans leading up to the release by sharing the singles “The Feels” in August and “Terrible” in September.

As a member of The Used, McCraken’s music has spanned the genre range from emo to screamo to post-hardcore to pop-punk to punk. But in his reinvention as robbietheused, he is taking himself in totally new unexpected direction, that of pop star.

robbietheused worked with long time The Used producer John Feldmann for this transformation. The two have known each other for two decades with Feldmann producing eight of The Used’s albums. The pair spent week-long studio sessions recording one song every day while exploring new sounds with heavy bass undertones and effects and vocoders.

“John Feldmann is a wizard,” robbietheused says. “He can make anything and he’s so easy to work with. He’s the hardest working man I know in the music industry. There’s no drama recording with him. It was a smooth process—just like making a Used record.”

“In the morning, we’d talk about how we’re feeling and what’s on our minds on that day,” he explains. “And ask, ‘How’s the mental health? How’s the vibes?’ And then we’d formulate a song around that. It was almost like a therapy session, where I’d really get to talk about anything that’s on my mind, and then make a song about it.”

It’s not uncommon for musical artists to crossover into a new genre whether it’s just for a dabble or a full-time switch. However, it’s not always easy for an artist to pull off this change, but some are able to do it. Anyone heard of someone named Taylor Swift? Now you can add robbietheused to this list. He seamlessly trades the negativity and attitude of Bert McCraken for the more positive mindset of robbietheused. You could start to sense some of this positivity starting to creep through on Toxic Positivity by The Used.

“Any feeling is valid—and to be able to put it to song is incredible,” robbietheused says. “And there’s so much room in this world for positivity. I want this music to show that there’s room for love. There’s room for growth. There’s room for redemption. There’s so many good people—and so many good things happening.”

It was evident from the album’s opening track “Terrible” that listeners were in for something new from the artist. With its electro pop tones and catchy chorus it sets the stage for robbie’s realization of a world of love and positivity.

“This is the first song we recorded for robbietheused. This is my favorite kind of pop song, a simple love song with a simple message. Can’t wait for you to sing along with me! Cause without You life is Terrible!” shares robbie.

While I am a big fan of Bert McCraken and The Used, it is nice seeing a softer side of him. Hopefully we will hear more from robbietheused in the future.

Listen to robbietheused out now via Big Noise Records here: https://bignoise.ffm.to/robbietheused

He will be starting a limited fall tour on October 30 in Anaheim, CA. Tickets for the tour are available at https://robbietheused.com

2024 Fall Tour Dates
October 30 – Anaheim, CA – House of Blues Anaheim – The Parish
October 31 – Los Angeles, CA – Echoplex
November 3 – Philadelphia, PA – Brooklyn Bowl
November 4 – New York, NY – Gramercy Theatre
November 6 – Asbury, NJ – House of Independents

Follow robbietheused:
https://robbietheused.com
https://www.facebook.com/robbietheused
https://www.instagram.com/robbietheused
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNVGJ77IjDF7tLu8V88-7yA
https://open.spotify.com/artist/6ulyIBuifBzU35RsvFZIx0

Post by Scott Raymer (Website | Instagram | Facebook)

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