Having freed himself from the pressures of leading one of the emo revival's most successful bands, former My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way debuts with a solo album that sounds distinctly liberated. There's hardly any MCR-style music here, but there's a ton of everything else: '70s glam rock ("Get the Gang Together"), '80s indie rock ("Juarez"), '90s Britpop ("Millions"). While tunes like "Action Cat" show that Way can still craft a great hook, others such as the fuzz-bomb "Zero Zero" demonstrate his eagerness to explore new sounds. Heck, "Drugstore Perfume" is soaring shoegaze. Hesitant Alien is a bold next step.

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