Had the chance to listen to the broadway album and I have such mixed feelings. Time to collect my thoughts after the first listen:
1) Though the squips singing is BOMB AF his speaking voice isn't sinister enough like in the original. Though I understand why Jason Tamm spoke that way (duh Keanu Reeves), It really pulled me out of the show but it will grow on me. As eddie puts it, the original squip was "the coolest dude" but new squip is "the chillest dude." 2) Will Roland DID GREAT! At times I still prefer Will Connolly's vocals (especially in More Than Survive - his runs are angelic) but Roland definitely has more emotion and acting. It's like saying one is a better Peter Parker and the other is a better Spiderman. They both nailed it in different ways.
3) The new songs are SUCH BOPS and the inclusion of new dialogue gives so much more context that builds up the entire album. The gaps were filled!
4) THE. CHARACTERIZATION. OF. JAKE. BROOKE. JENNA. AND CHLOE. They are no longer static characters! They have motivation and personality more than just the "mean girl" or "ditz" or "jock." AND RICH'S LISP. Even Jeremy's dad has more context, and Jeremy's decision to avoid Michael makes far more sense thanks to Loser, Geek, Whatever. ALSO: LOVED THE FRENCH BITS.
5) I like a lot of the lyrical changes but UGH now i have to relearn lyrics. Unfortunately some of my favorite lyrics (especially in Pitiful Children) were removed and that's a lowkey bummer. But the changes they made make sense so I'm okay with it!
Overall, what a great cast album! Definitely going to add it to my collection. Some songs I'll probably prefer the off broadway recording more (Pitiful Children) and others I prefer the new recording (Smartphone Hour) So excited to be seeing this in June!!
