Anyways Gojo Sings All Of This So Real - Tumblr Posts
Running List of No Scrubs Albums
Because even I can't keep up with them anymore lol. I'll update it as I go. Also yes there are 6 official albums with 6 songs each... because Gojo is lame lol. And yes the acoustic albums are 5 songs... because he's extra lame
Spotify Playlist
update as of 09/18/23 bc I'm a f** scrub with commitment issues clearly
1. Thanks, I Hate it Here:
The 2nd album by release order, but first in chronological order of when they played them live. Yes, Gojo was feeling himself in his classic FOB phase real hard on this one lol. I find the evolution of FOB IRL to be really fascinating, so I wanted to emulate it in the fic. This album is almost entirely FOB because Gojo realized flopping around bands and genres was difficult for the rest of his band, so he decided to first focus on one kind of ‘sound’ until they got used to playing together.
Critics will later call it a bit unpolished and juvenile in comparison to the refined sound, themes, and quality production of later albums, with it's younger and unproduced sound. Thematically it tends to resonate more with a younger crowd, which people accredit to Ru-kun's assumed age of writing at the time (early 20's). In other words, it becomes the quintessential 'middle school glory days' playlist for an entire generation of No Scrubs fans. This is a parallel to the actual bands, who were quite young when they wrote these songs.
A Loaded God Complex - (Sugar We're Going Down) FOB
Reinventing the Wheel to Run Myself Over - FOB
In Too Deep - Sum 41
Homesick at Space Camp - FOB
A Little Less Sixteen Candles - FOB
Dance, Dance - FOB
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2. Good News For People Who Love Bad News
No Scrubs' first album ever released on a streaming platform, but compromises songs more from their 2nd live setlist chronologically. A cult favorite amongst the fans, this album is fun and bratty with a combination of punchy pop punk lyrics and catchy hooks that become unanimous with the band's sound. No Scrubs always had a rep as an underground alternative band with petty delinquent vibes, but this album definitely solidified them as the patron saint of all the edgy and misunderstood goth punks.
At this point the band had been together for a few years and Gojo definitely felt satisfied with the way the band was coming together and wanted to throw in some more famous mid 2000s pop punk bands into the mix.
Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner - FOB
I'm Not Okay (I promise) - MCR
In One Ear - Cage the Elephant
But It's Better if You Do - Panic!
I Write Sins not Tragedies - Panic!
Jesus of Suburbia - Green Day
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3. Death Before Decaf
After playing up the 'pop' quite a bit in the last album, No Scrubs digs deep into some gritty roots with their third album, full of noisy garage rock anthems. Thematically it's considered their strongest album yet, with intense vocals and lyrics covering dark and personal topics beneath the guise of their distinctive and iconic instrumental riffs. The juxtaposition between the catchy sing-along hooks and the depressing deeper meaning to the words made this album an instant classic. It's a fan favorite of music critics for Ru-kun's scorchingly honest handling of raw and deeply personal themes like suicide, depression, and substance abuses. After the identities of the band members became public, it became a hotly debated album amongst No Scrubs fans, who consider it a cathartic outlet for a lot of the trauma that turned Ru-kun into a villain, but also a worrying one full of suicidal ideation, alcoholism, drugs, and child abuse.
On his part, Gojo was feeling nostalgic for his youth and felt it an affront that the likes of Nirvana and Weezer had never been experienced in the MHA universe. He gets asked about these songs a lot, specifically about Today, Semi-Charmed Life, and Say it Ain't So. He often tells people Semi-Charmed Life is one of his favorite songs ever, which doesn't help matters, and also alarms several psychologists, who worry he's romanticizing what was clearly a very unhealthy time in his life.
My Own Worst Enemy - Lit
Today is the Greatest - (Today) Smashing Pumpkins
Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana
Come As You Are - Nirvana
Say It Ain't So - Weezer
Semi-Charmed Life - Third Eye Blind
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4. Glass Onion Heart
Aka the "Baby boy who hurt you???" album inspiring sexuality crises across the world
Glass Onion Heart feels like a wild card of metamorphosis from No Scrubs' prior albums, with the addition of more electronic and synth sounds. Combined with the explosive and flashy tour that accompanied the album's release, it felt like a radical departure from the band's classic noisy garage sound into a more streamlined indie-pop format.
The album was met with divisiveness from fans, not helped by the news of the band's breakup following the album release and subsequent tour. While many adored the new direction, long-time fans mourned the loss of the classic 'No Scrubs' sound, especially when faced with the thought of their final album. Nonetheless, it was the band's most popular album at time of release. It certainly helped the album's popularity that Ru-kun did the entire tour in drag.
At this point fans the world over became intrigued by No Scrubs and their burgeoning fame, prompting Gojo to name the album 'Glass Onion' after the Beatles song of the same name, because there is no deeper meaning to any of his songs, he's literally ripping them off from bands that don't exist. Fans spend way too long trying to figure out who this album was inspired by - who could have possibly broken their precious Ru-kun's heart?? - and as we enlightened No Scrubs fans know, it was no one. Literally no one. Gojo just really liked this femme fatale vibe, and decided to cross dress the entire tour because of it.
Tokyo - The Wombats
Dance Floor Anthem - Good Charlotte
Thanks for the Memories - Fall Out Boy
I'm the Leading Man - (This Ain't a Scene) Fall Out Boy
Moving to New York - The Wombats
Misery Business - Paramore
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5. Infinity on High
Hailed as a return to the unfettered, unabashed, anti-establishment garage rock that had people flocking to No Scrubs in their heyday, this album made an intense splash as No Scrubs' Comeback Album. Despite the return to their signature gritty sound, this album was in fact the most produced of any of No Scrubs' albums. This album marks both the return of No Scrubs as well as their launch into global superstardom.
Ironically, Gojo named this after his favorite FOB album (I mean it IS called Infinity lol) despite not including a single FOB track. Fans widely consider "Island in the Sun" to be specifically about Hawks, which Gojo never confirms or denies (although he definitely did think the similarities to their island mission were amusing). In reality, the song that reminds him of Hawks - and himself - the most is Mayonnaise, which might be why it's one of his favorites.
Holiday - Green Day
Cherub Rock - Smashing Pumpkins
Cool Enough - (Mayonnaise) Smashing Pumpkins
1979 - Smashing Pumpkins
Island in the Sun - Weezer
Wake Me Up - (Wake Me Up When September Ends) Green Day
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Bonus: Don't You Know Who (I Think) I AM? Acoustic Album
Nobody Puts Baby In the Corner - Fall Out Boy
Grand Theft Autumn - Fall Out Boy
My Heart is the Worst Kind of Weapon - Fall Out Boy
Notion - Rare Occasions
No Such Thing - John Mayer
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Bonus: Take (Me) With a Grain of Salt
Despite the critical acclaim this acoustic album (and the full band versions eventually released afterwards) it was met with a lot of incendiary response at the time of its release. No Scrubs had finally achieved global stardom and was regularly topping hit charts across the world with the release of their album Infinity on High - and while music critics unanimously praised the EP as a worthy contender for Album of the Year, it was generally acknowledged truth that the album's popularity was owed in no small part to lead singer Ru-kun's sudden infamy that coincided at the same time.
The unfathomable depths of Ru-kun's new celebrity status in parallel to the band's brand of off-label, anti-establishment themes created friction within the fanbase. Many accused them of taking advantage of the current media coverage to promote sales, which bassist and band leader Makoto clapped back as 'just doing smart business'. In general, consensus was positive towards the sentiment; capitalizing on Ru-kun's fame and releasing an album in parallel to his identity reveal was just genius marketing.
However the timing of the release of Ru-kun's second acoustic album kicked up the discourse once again, with fans decrying the release as 'a fake sellout' aimed to exploit current gossip trends. However the album's drop was sudden and unexpected - with little to no pre-release marketing - lending credence to the narrative that Ru-kun wrote this album under the emotional duress of his personal life at the time.
Due to the staggering popularity of the acoustic album, the band eventually recorded and released a B-Side with full band versions.
Disenchanted - MCR
Stay Together For the Kids - Blink-182
Iris - Goo Goo Dolls
How's It Going To Be - Third Eye Blind
All These Things That I've Done - The Killers