INSIDE

 

Note: The analysis is on the ‘INSIDE’ album, I have not watched the Netflix special except for some snippets on YouTube.

 

Bo Burnham’s new album ‘INSIDE’ is a banger.  It was released on June 2021 and is also a comedy special featured on Netflix. ‘INSIDE’ takes us through Burnham's life during the 2020 lockdown as he vents his frustration and panic about the pandemic. The album provides an 'inside' glimpse of his professional journey as a comedian and his mental health struggles. Burnham created the entire album in the attic of his LA home from March 2021 to May 2022. He worked out all the details right from the music composition to producing the entire album. This earned him various nominations, three Emmy Awards for direction and writing, and a Grammy award for the best song. Whimsical lyrics, internet catchphrases, and slangs make the album relatable especially to Gen Z, and have a mass appeal.

 

 The entire album revolves around two main themes- content and comedy. These themes are evident as the album starts with the songs ‘Content’ and ‘Comedy’. Content is at its heyday right now, never before in history have we witnessed the amount of content inundation that we experience today- both in creation and consumption. The accessibility of modern technology across the world has changed the game in the last decade. It portrays humanity’s instinct to seek comedy and entertainment during hard times. This also relates to how in ancient times bards were highly venerated as they traveled across villages sharing poetry and stories throughout the year.

 

Similar to the album cover photo, the songs in the album are all over the place reflecting Burnham’s physical and mental state during the lockdown. Other important issues like global warming, racism, and political crisis are peppered across various songs. The album ‘INSIDE’ title coincides with Harry Style’s recent album titled ‘HARRY’S HOUSE’. While the latter is a completely different genre of music with a varied theme, the title of both albums represents the dread that we experienced in the prolonged quarantine and its manifestation in music.

 

Bo Burnham captures all the nitty-gritty nonsense details of the internet and makes it a comic satire. It is ironic as Burnham got initially famous on YouTube by writing songs and comedy pieces as a teenager. In the song ‘Welcome to the internet’ Burnham’s explicit description of the internet slaps hard and is a roller-coaster ride. . Bo Burnham references the implications of social media and its relationship with one’s mental health in most of the songs in the album. “We used to colonize the land. That was the thing you could expand into. And that’s where money was made. We colonized the entire earth. There was no other place for businesses and capitalism to expand into.  And then they realized human attention, they are now trying to colonize every minute of your life.” Bo Burnham expressed this during his directorial debut movie ‘Eight Grade’ promotions.

 

Though the songs in the album flounce away with their pop music and sing-along lyrics, its created with much forethought and care. Bo Burnham is very reflective of his music and his perception of the world. The artist also interprets his life during the pandemic as he observes the catastrophe unfurling in the physical environment and within himself. He tries hard to not fall prey to the treacherous tide and keeps the fight going (All eyes on me).  In retrospect, the album presents a darker picture of the world as our fidelity to the internet continues.

 

P.S.- Insider outtakes have additional songs and BTS shots which are super cool and fun.