Malcolm Todd, I Just Got Mad | Song Review

Bedroom pop singer-songwriter Malcolm Todd releases his anger on his brief but electrifying single, “I Just Got Mad.”

[nx_pullquote]“Fuck!”[/nx_pullquote] And so, begins “I Just Got Mad” by Malcolm Todd.  Never change, Malcolm! He shines on the brief, two-and-a-half-minute cut.  Post Do That Again, the track at hand is expected to appear on the deluxe version of his sophomore album. Todd wrote and produced this mad cut with Charlie Ziman.

Following that explosive f-bomb on “I Just Got Mad,” Malcolm Todd expresses his anger much more melodically and, of course, less explicitly.  The song begins with the centerpiece, the chorus:

“I just got mad; I’m really bad at not being attached

I’m really cool until I have to talk

Now all of the words I know, I just forgot

But I’d like to take you to eat

What do you think, do you think about me? I think about all the things I’ve done wrong

And how it would hurt if you don’t like this song

Sorry, I just got mad.”

Malcolm Todd said what he said! As always, he gives a pleasant vocal performance. He sounds chill, easygoing, and soulful without breaking a sweat.  “I Just Got Mad” is melodious throughout, including the verse. Lyrically, Todd is true to himself and his style; he’s honest and vulnerable to the nth degree, in a Gen-Z, bedroom-pop sort of way. “What to do, I’m over love / It’s so overrated to me,” he sings in the verse, and continues, “I miss your touch, I hate your guts / I hate how I can’t ever leave.” Beyond the captivating songwriting, there is solid production work: guitar, an active, robust bass line, colorful keys/pad/synths, anchored by a simple but strong beat. All told, “I Just Got Mad” marks another winner for Malcolm Todd.