Fake as Hell

Prior to their collaboration, All Time Low and Avril Lavigne had already joined forces in 2022 when they performed a cover of Blink-182's "All the Small Things" during their set at the When We Were Young festival.^[1][2] A year subsequent to their initial collaboration, All Time Low and Avril Lavigne forged their second collaborative effort with the release of the single "Fake as Hell".^[3] The song was written by Andrew Goldstein, Alex Gaskarth, Avril Lavigne, Jack Barakat, and Zakk Cervini with Cervini also serving as the producer.^[4] It was released on September 14, 2023, on digital and streaming platforms through Fueled by Ramen.^[5]

"Fake as Hell" is a pop punk track that delves into the emotional landscape of a breakup and its aftermath.^[6][7] According to All Time Low's frontman, Alex Gaskarth, the song revolves around the theme of "recognizing what's real and saying goodbye to what's not".^[8] Gaskarth describes it as an anthem about cutting ties with people and things that hinder personal progress, symbolizing a departure from the past and a fresh perspective on the future. In his words, "It's a wave goodbye to whatever's in the rear-view mirror and a new perspective on the road ahead".^[8] The lyrics convey a symbolic departure from the past and an optimistic embrace of a new journey ahead.^[6]

"Fake as Hell" was received positively upon release by critics; with Mary Varvaris of The Music describing the song as "a three-minute pop-punk anthem" about "recognizing what's real and saying goodbye to what's not".^[9] Alternative Press' Andrew Sacher praised the song, calling it an "aughts-era pop-punk sugar rush you'd expect from a collaboration like this one".^[10] Cillea Houghton of American Songwriter praised the artists' vocal performance in the song by calling them "strong voices that were made for each other, making for a natural collaboration".^[6]

In a review for The Eastern Echo, Kasper Mielke described the track as "the definition of pop punk", praising its catchy guitar-driven sound and the strong vocal contrast between Gaskarth and Lavigne, calling them "a match made in heaven", while also highlighting the effective simplicity of lyrics like "Feel like a kite in a hurricane, so cut the string and let me fly away", ultimately rating the song 8 out of 10.^[11]