Arm’s Length - There’s A Whole World Out There
“And when I swear on my life
We both know that the stakes aren't high”.
WARNING: This review discusses some heavy topics such as suicide. Reader discretion is advised.
Canadian quartet Arm’s Length received significant acclaim within the emo scene in 2022 with their debut LP, Never Before Seen, Never Again Found. Their sophomore record, There’s A Whole World Out There, released on May 16th through Pure Noise Records, retains the solid foundations laid down on their first album, and builds upon them significantly, resulting in a project that sets a landmark not only for the genre, but for the year in music as a whole.
The sound of the album is top-notch and in all the traditions of the emo and post-hardcore genres: crisp instrumental tones, particularly when it comes to the guitars; clean, punchy production, mixing the instruments together very well. The structuring and composition of the record are very well-executed, with excellent riffs and impactful breakdown segments.
But it's the band's frontman Allen Steinberg who really powers this record to the incredible heights it achieves. He has stated that a lot of the tracks were created when he was at his worst mentally, and this is extremely evident in the best way possible, as his pain and vulnerability bleed out into his writing throughout the album, where he is the sole credited lyricist. Themes of love, care and loyalty contrast in an extremely cutting way with those of mental health issues, grief, loss, illness and more. And Steinberg's vocal delivery is incredibly raw and genuine, making every single line connect deeply with the listener. He also does very well varying between clean singing and desperate, heaving screams, adding an extra punch to the tracks.
There are three major standout tracks on the album. Firstly, the second single “You Ominously End” exemplifies Steinberg’s unorthodox, but fantastic choice to integrate banjo into the record’s soundscape, as well as being one of the album's strongest written tracks. It addresses someone going through severe mental health issues, including a failed suicide attempt, and contains some of the hardest hitting lines on the project, such as “You felt ashamed that you survived; thought if there's one thing you’d do right, it'd be the best Irish goodbye”. That track leads directly into the incredibly tender acoustic track “Early Onset”, which explores similar topical matter a little more subtly, and focuses more on the narrator’s care and concern for the person he’s addressing. It's a brilliant and well-placed dynamic shift within the record's structure, and part of its strongest four-track stretch, which also includes “The Wound” and " Genetic Lottery” either side of the aforementioned two tracks.
The third and final major highlight of the project is the closer, “Morning Person". Spanning seven minutes, it wraps up the record by bringing together its central themes - mental struggles, absolute love and devotion, questioning of morality and personal character, and the fear of not being enough. The instrumental and rhythms of the track go through several changes which keep it engaging through the extensive length, and Steinberg is once again the central driving force with his great lyrics and powerful vocals.
In conclusion, There’s A Whole World Out There is a brilliant album. It’s supremely emotionally resonant and touching, fantastically written, composed, produced and delivered, and is a huge statement by a band that, with a relatively short discography, has already left a huge imprint in the modern history of their genre. It only grows on you with every listen, with new things that you missed before becoming apparent each time; and it is one of, if not the best album to be released so far in 2025.
9.0/10
