Special: Ranking Grayscale's "Adornment"

As of Today's writing (July 15th), Grayscale just announced a new EP of reworked tunes coming at the end of the month so I figured now is as good of time as any to look back at Grayscale's Fearless Records debut album "Adornment".

11. Slept

Slept is the penultimate track off of Adornment but it ranks at the bottom of my ranking. This is the 2nd time the 2nd to last track ends up at the bottom of one of my rankings but unlike the previous time (Waterparks - Crybaby) this is not a bad song, just the worst on Adornment.

10. Atlantic

Bring on the hate! Atlantic is Grayscale's most popular song and was the lead single on this album and it also introduced me to the band, unfortunately it has not aged well and I'm thankful I bought the album on a whim as some deep cuts ended up being my favourites.

9. Fever Dream

Yet another single and fan favourite ends up near the bottom as this is their 2nd most played song off Adornment (after Atlantic) it's dark tones are fine but other songs on the album do it better although the creepy music video that accompanied this song was stellar.


8. Slipping Away

Despite being at #3 in the tracklisting, joined by singles and fan faves within the first 5 tracks, Slipping Away is often forgotten which is sad cause it really is a good song but much like Fever Dream above, other songs channel the pop punk darkness better.

7. Come Undone

I'll be the first to admit the juxtaposition of Patty Walters (As It Is) vocals with lead singer Collin Walsh seem like an odd fit but it works well together. Fearless Records had both of their bands on their roster so it made sense at the time however Grayscale's popularity has since soared.

6. Echoes (Carry On)

We've made it to the midpoint of our list with a song the band loves but seldom plays (only Come Undone and Slept have been played less according to Setlist.fm. However they did play it on their last run of shows so maybe it'll end up in the mix some more going forward.

5. If I Ever See You Again

The last song on the record, the last of 5 music videos to be made for the album, If I Ever See You Again deserves a spot in the front half of this ranking. It's loud chorus and gang vocals make you want to scream along in celebration of getting over a bad relationship.

4. Forever Yours

A romantic sounding song that is anything but, Forever Yours was the 3rd single released and ranks the highest out of the 5 on this ranking. It has recently passed Atlantic as their most streamed song on Spotify and it's just a matter of time before it supplants Atlantic as the set closer.

3. Mum

The most punk sounding song lands in the top 3 though ironically this is also one of the most polished sounding songs on the record. Mum deals with a difficult subject, a parent's fight with drug abuse which hits close to home for myself.

2. Beautiful Things

Speaking of songs dealing with difficult subject matter, Beautiful Things deals with mental health issues such as depression and the suicidal thoughts that come with it. I have no idea if this song was written about Collin's cousin Tommy who tragically took his own life but one would think he'd like the opportunity to play this to his cousin once more regardless.

1. Let It Rain

Track One: Let It Rain. You'll be hard pressed to find a better album opener than this, though Grayscale has a tendency for starting off albums with straight up heat so if this is bested it might be by their own hand. It's about wanting a fresh start and encompasses the album's tone in one bop.