The Spill Magazine The Spill Magazine
The Spill Magazine The Spill Magazine
The Spill Magazine The Spill Magazine
  • Reviews
    • Album Reviews
    • Features
    • Live Reviews
    • Festivals
  • Portraits
  • Headlines
    • News
    • Contests
    • Events
    • Entertainment Headlines
    • Concert Listings
    • Toronto Concert Venues
  • New Music
    • Premieres
    • Track Of The Day
  • Track Of The Month
  • Books + Movies
  • About
16
new
SPILL NEWS: SKINNY PUPPY TAPS LEAD INTO GOLD AS DIRECT SUPPORT FOR US/CANADA TOUR | NEW SINGLE “THE ETERNAL PRESENT” OUT NOW
SPILL FEATURE: IT’S NEVER TOO LATE – A CONVERSATION WITH STIX ZADINIA OF STEEL PANTHER
SPILL NEWS: BITCHFEST! 2023 – HIGHLIGHTING FEMALE, NON-BINARY, TRANS AND TWO-SPIRIT VOICES IN THE MUSIC SCENE ACROSS THE GTA
SPILL NEWS: JINJER TO SUPPORT HEADLINERS DISTURBED + SPECIAL GUESTS BREAKING BENJAMIN ON “TAKE BACK YOUR LIFE TOUR”
SPILL NEW MUSIC: HAYDEN RELEASES NEW SINGLE & VIDEO “MISS FORT ERIE” | WESTERN CANADIAN SOLO TOUR DATES
SPILL NEW MUSIC: THE DAMNED ANNOUNCE BRAND NEW STUDIO ALBUM ‘DARKADELIC’ OUT ON APRIL 28 ON earMUSIC | REVEAL NEW SINGLE + TOUR DATES
SPILL NEWS: THE SISTERS OF MERCY ANNOUNCE FIRST U.S. TOUR IN OVER A DECADE
SPILL NEWS: THE NORTHERN PIKES ACOUSTICALLY REIMAGINE FAN FAVOURITES FROM ‘SNOW IN JUNE’ ON TENTH STUDIO ALBUM ‘TIME TO TIME’
SPILL NEW MUSIC: SUBHUMANS UNVEIL HUGE BOX SET | ALL RECORDS REMIXED AND REMASTERED FROM ORIGINAL TAPES
SPILL NEW MUSIC: ORBITAL RELEASE NEW SINGLE “ARE YOU ALIVE?” FEATURING PENELOPE ISLES
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MMEADOWS – LIGHT MOVES AROUND YOU
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: WILL EPSTEIN – WENDY
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: COLONY HOUSE – THE CANNONBALLERS
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: ROBERT FORSTER – THE CANDLE AND THE FLAME
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: FANTASTIC NEGRITO – GRANDFATHER COURAGE
SPILL NEW MUSIC: BLUTENGEL RELEASED THIRD NEW SINGLE & VIDEO “WE BELONG TO THE NIGHT” | TOUR DATES
  • Reviews
    • Album Reviews
    • Features
    • Live Reviews
    • Festivals
  • Portraits
  • Headlines
    • News
    • Contests
    • Events
    • Entertainment Headlines
    • Concert Listings
    • Toronto Concert Venues
  • New Music
    • Premieres
    • Track Of The Day
  • Track Of The Month
  • Books + Movies
  • About
  • Spill Menu
    • Reviews
      • Album Reviews
      • Features
      • Live Reviews
      • Festivals
    • Portraits
    • Headlines
      • News
      • Contests
      • Events
      • Entertainment Headlines
      • Concert Listings
      • Toronto Concert Venues
    • New Music
      • Premieres
      • Track Of The Day
    • Track Of The Month
    • Books + Movies
    • About
Album Reviews
229
previous article
Album Review: Kelly Hogan - I Like to Keep Myself in Pain
next article
Album Review: Riff Raff - The Golden Alien

Album Review: Maximo Park – The National Health

Maximo Park
The National Health
V2 Records
RATING

At this point, the members of Maximo Park are no strangers to the notion of the fast-paced Rock anthem. The National Health marks Newcastle-based Maximo Park’s fourth studio release, the band’s first release since 2009’s Quicken the Heart.

This album is a ball of energy, barrelling forward at lightning speed and churning out catchy hooks left and right. Manic guitar licks and punchy synths frame the album’s edgier cuts (“Hips and Lips”, “Waves of Fear”), while fuzzy strings and airy piano cushion the album’s lighter tracks (“Unfamiliar Places”, “When I Was Wild”).

This assortment of genre-bending tunes makes for an interesting mix, but as a collective, the body of songs feels a bit uneven. Though some songs are undeniably addictive, the album as a whole reveals itself very quickly, leaving little to discover upon further listens.

The National Health is a good effort, but for all its bravado, it amounts to something that more readily approaches mediocrity than greatness.

Maria Sokulsky-Dolnycky (Twitter @marisodo)

maximopark.com/

close

STAY UP-TO-DATE
WITH OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER!

* Mandatory Field

Check your inbox or spam folder now (just in case!) to confirm your subscription.

Item Reviewed

Album Review: Maximo Park – The National Health

Author

Maria Sokulsky-Dolnycky

Here's what we think...
Spill Rating
Fan Rating
Rate Here
New Criteria
5.0
—
3.0
Total Spill Rating
—
Total Fan Rating
You have rated this
Album Reviews
album reviewsmaximo parkthe national health
album reviews, maximo park, the national health
About the Author
Maria Sokulsky-Dolnycky
Maria Sokulsky-Dolnycky is a 23-year-old culture enthusiast born and raised in Toronto. She is a recent graduate of the University of Toronto, where she studied linguistics, German, and music history & culture. When not listening to or making music, she can be found exploring the city’s many neighbourhoods on foot, cycling by the lake, devouring films, or scouring Toronto’s many libraries in search of her next favourite book.
RELATED ARTICLES
album reviewsmaximo park
 
8.0
Mmeadows

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MMEADOWS – LIGHT MOVES AROUND YOU

by Ljubinko Zivkovic on February 3, 2023
Mmeadows Light Moves Around You Independent On paper, the combination of Kristin Slipp and Cole Kamen-Green, aka Mmeadows, can sound like a strange combination. After all, Slipp is a member of avant-garde pop band Dirty Projectors, and Green has [...]
 
8.0
Will Epstein

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: WILL EPSTEIN – WENDY

by Ljubinko Zivkovic on February 3, 2023
Will Epstein Wendy Fat Possum Records A casual listen to Wendy, the new album by Woodstock, NY’s Will Epstein, might make one fall into the trap of labeling this album and Epstein with the standard tag of singer songwriter. Yet, as the album [...]
 
7.0
Colony House
8.3

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: COLONY HOUSE – THE CANNONBALLERS

by Dan Kennard on February 3, 2023
Colony House The Cannonballers Roon Records Colony House, the multi-talented alt-rockers from Franklin, Tennessee, have released a new album The Cannonballers, a follow up to their last studio album Leave What’s Lost Behind (2020). The result is [...]
 
9.0
Robert Forster
9.4

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: ROBERT FORSTER – THE CANDLE AND THE FLAME

by Ljubinko Zivkovic on February 3, 2023
Robert Forster The Candle And The Flame Tapete Records The Go-Betweens, in both the band’s incarnations, were probably one of the best rock bands ever. That greatness was based on the songwriting and friendship dynamic between Robert [...]
 
9.0
Fantastic Negrito

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: FANTASTIC NEGRITO – GRANDFATHER COURAGE

by Gerrod Harris on February 3, 2023
FANTASTIC NEGRITO GRANDFATHER COURAGE STOREFRONT RECORDS Fantastic Negrito made waves with his creative odyssey of a 2022 album, White Jesus Black Problems, an album which tackled the story of his mixed ancestry in the era of American slavery, [...]

Latest Album Reviews
View All
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MMEADOWS – LIGHT MOVES AROUND YOU
8.0
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: WILL EPSTEIN – WENDY
8.0
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: COLONY HOUSE – THE CANNONBALLERS
7.0
8.3
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: ROBERT FORSTER – THE CANDLE AND THE FLAME
9.0
9.4
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: FANTASTIC NEGRITO – GRANDFATHER COURAGE
9.0

STAY UP-TO-DATE
WITH OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER!

* Mandatory Field

Check your inbox or spam folder now (just in case!) to confirm your subscription.

Tweets by @spillmagazine

SPILL MAGAZINE MENU
  • Home | The Spill Magazine
  • Premieres
  • Track Of The Month
  • Album Reviews
  • Books + Movies
  • Features
  • Live Reviews
  • Festivals
  • Portraits
  • News
  • Events
  • Entertainment Headlines
  • Concert Listings
  • Toronto Concert Venues
  • About Us
  • Contests
  • New Music
  • Contributors
  • TOTD
  • Privacy Policy
  • The Scene Unseen
  • Newsletter

Copyright © 2023 | The Spill Magazine
All Rights Reserved.

TRENDING RIGHT NOW
   
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: QUADECA – I DIDN’T MEAN TO HAUNT YOU
2346
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: THE HUMAN LEAGUE – THE VIRGIN YEARS
1850
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: ELVIS PRESLEY – ELVIS ON TOUR
916
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: SHRIEKBACK – BOWLAHOOLA
794
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: BOB DYLAN – FRAGMENTS – TIME OUT OF MIND SESSIONS (1996-1997) THE BOOTLEG SERIES VOL. 17
619
 
SPILL NEWS: RICKIE LEE JONES NEVER DID FOLLOW THE RULES | ‘PIECES OF TREASURE’ OUT APRIL 28 (BMG MODERN)
539
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: CHEAP TRICK – LIVE AT THE WHISKY 1977
508
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: DAVID CROSBY & THE LIGHTHOUSE BAND – LIVE AT THE CAPITAL THEATRE
379
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: NAZZ – LOST MASTERS & DEMOS
348
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: JOAN ARMATRADING – LIVE AT ASYLUM CHAPEL
329
 
SPILL MUSIC PREMIERE: GRAMERCY ARMS – “YESTERDAY’S GIRL” FT. LLOYD COLE
328
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: LITTLE RIVER BAND – ULTIMATE HITS/MASTERPIECES
326
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: RINGO STARR AND HIS ALL-STARR BAND – LIVE AT THE GREEK THEATRE 2019
288
ENTERTAINMENT HEADLINES