The Twilight Sad IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE

Critic's Take

The Twilight Sad's IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE reads like a two-decade refinement of their sound, and the best tracks on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE are precisely those that fuse heartbreak with full-throttle release. The reviewer lingers on “DEAD FLOWERS” as the marauding centrepiece, describing its cerebral beginning and mid-song turn that erupts into catharsis. Equally, “CHEST WOUND TO THE CHEST” earns praise for one of Graham's most infectious melodies, while “WAITING FOR THE PHONE CALL” is singled out as an excellent lead single that showcases the record's emotional clarity. This is an album that questions and rarely answers, and these standout songs are why listeners will search for the best songs on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE.

Key Points

• DEAD FLOWERS is the album's emotional centrepiece because of its cerebral opening and explosive mid-song catharsis.
• The album's core strengths are refined textural evolution and candid confrontation of loss, delivered through Graham's vocals and layered production.

Themes

Critic's Take

The Twilight Sad's IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE feels like a slow-burning exorcism, each song matching Graham's grief with muscular, often brutal instrumentation. The opener “GET AWAY FROM IT ALL” and closer “TV PEOPLE STILL THROWING TVS AT PEOPLE” are framed as bookends that refuse to let up.

Key Points

• The penultimate “BACK TO FOURTEEN” is the record’s emotional apex and therefore the best song.
• The album pairs brutal, effects-heavy instrumentation with intimate, cathartic lyrics to powerful effect.

Themes

Critic's Take

The Twilight Sad turn private devastation into a public reckoning on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE, where the best songs - including “GET AWAY FROM IT ALL” and “DEAD FLOWERS” - refuse consolation and demand to be felt. Heather Phares’ sentences are spare but insistent, and she frames “GET AWAY FROM IT ALL” as an opening plunge that captures the album’s emotional magnitude. She treats “DEAD FLOWERS” as the commanding centerpiece, noting Robert Smith’s keys as a crucial emotional tether. Elsewhere, tracks like “WAITING FOR THE PHONE CALL” and “BACK TO FOURTEEN” deepen the record’s narrative of helplessness and return to childlike need, making clear why listeners ask "what are the best tracks on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE?"

Key Points

• The best song, "GET AWAY FROM IT ALL", is best because it most viscerally captures dementia’s emotional magnitude.
• The album’s core strengths are its unflinching lyrics and music that converts private grief into searing, cathartic rock.

Themes

Critic's Take

In her measured, emotionally attuned voice Lori Gava finds the best tracks on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE by lingering on moments that carry the album’s grief. She points to the opening surge of “GET AWAY FROM IT ALL” as the record’s tone-setter, where waves of guitar mirror the emotional weight, while “DESIGNED TO LOSE” is praised as one of the album’s most immediate moments thanks to its huge bassline and forward motion. Gava treats “INHOSPITABLE/HOSPITAL” as one of the most difficult, restrained listens that hits hardest, and she sees “BACK TO FOURTEEN” and “TV PEOPLE STILL THROWING TVS AT PEOPLE” as the closing arc toward acceptance. The narrative keeps the band’s DNA intact while arguing these tracks stand out for their emotional clarity and compositional purpose.

Key Points

• The best song, "GET AWAY FROM IT ALL", sets the album's tone with overwhelming guitars and Graham’s exposed vocals.
• The album’s core strength is its unflinching emotional honesty, turning personal grief into sharply focused, powerful songs.

Themes

Critic's Take

The Twilight Sad return on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE feels towering and necessary, with best tracks like “GET AWAY FROM IT ALL” and “THE CEILING UNDERGROUND” distilling James Graham’s grief into commanding songs. The review’s tone is both declarative and compassionate, noting how “GET AWAY FROM IT ALL” yearns plainly while “THE CEILING UNDERGROUND” builds into a sustained crescendo that lands emotionally. Mid-album highlights such as “DESIGNED TO LOSE” and “INHOSPITABLE/HOSPITAL” rework goth and Cure-adjacent textures into sharper, more tuneful statements. Overall, the best songs on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE marry bleak beauty with anthemic momentum, making the album one of the band’s most commanding creations to date.

Key Points

• The album’s best song, "GET AWAY FROM IT ALL," is best for its direct, yearning vocal that distills Graham’s grief.
• The album’s core strength is turning personal loss into anthemic, commanding songs that balance bleakness with tuneful momentum.

Themes

Critic's Take

The Twilight Sad return on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE feels like a reckoning, with songs such as “GET AWAY FROM IT ALL” and “WAITING FOR THE PHONE CALL” cutting through the noise with wounded clarity and directness. The review reads with a measured authority, noting how “DESIGNED TO LOSE” and “ATTEMPT A CRASH LANDING - THEME” build patiently, letting tension swell before catharsis. There is retrospective power here - guitars that swell like memories, lyrics stripped of metaphor to face grief head-on, making these tracks the best songs on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE for fans who want both drama and intimacy.

Key Points

• The best song, "WAITING FOR THE PHONE CALL", is best because its direct lyrics and crashing chords most clearly translate grief into immediacy.
• The album’s core strengths are muscular dynamics, reflective songwriting, and a reconnection to the band’s early sonic identity.

Themes

Critic's Take

The Twilight Sad's IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE feels like a terrible, beautiful reckoning, every song steeped in grief and furious tenderness. The reviewer highlights “WAITING FOR THE PHONE CALL” as an immediate standout, its ravey synths and Robert Smith guitar accentuating Graham's wait for bad news. Equally recommended are “DEAD FLOWERS” for its expansive, Cure-esque seven-minute reach and “ATTEMPT A CRASH LANDING - THEME” for the gut-punching refrain, all reasons listeners search for the best tracks on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE. The album's combination of crashing shoegaze, subtle electronics and raw lyricism makes these the best songs on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE, each one earning its place in the record's devastating arc.

Key Points

• The best song, “WAITING FOR THE PHONE CALL”, is best for its immediate emotional thrust, Robert Smith guitar cameo, and stark lyrics about impending loss.
• The album’s core strengths are its raw exploration of grief, fusion of crashing shoegaze and subtle electronics, and moments of expansive, Cure-like atmosphere.

Themes

Critic's Take

The Twilight Sad return on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE with songs that cut and console, and the best tracks - notably “GET AWAY FROM IT ALL” and “DEAD FLOWERS” - show that balance. The record’s early ferocity in “ATTEMPT A CRASH LANDING - THEME” and the brisk intensity of “DESIGNED TO LOSE” make the best songs on IT’S THE LONG GOODBYE feel both demanding and worthwhile. Overall, Gill frames the album as a powerful, cathartic return that asks much of listeners and gives meaningful emotional payoff.

Key Points

• GET AWAY FROM IT ALL is the best song for its intimate climax and emotional rawness.
• The album's core strengths are its cathartic emotional weight and brooding post-punk atmosphere.

Themes