Glaive was inspired by bands and musicians such as Brand New, Modern Baseball, the 1975, Bon Iver, ABBA, and Mura Masa while recording the album in Los Angeles.

The album was produced by returning collaborators Jeff Hazin and Ralph Castelli with contributions from Alexander 23, Underscores, Rodaidh McDonald, Nick Ferraro, Michael Pollack, and the Monsters & Strangerz.

It received generally favorable reviews from critics, who enjoyed Glaive's ability to successfully express youthful emotions, although some considered it a downgrade when compared to his previous work and felt negative about his departure from hyperpop.

[9] During 2022, Glaive collaborated with high-profile musicians like Travis Barker and Machine Gun Kelly and was a supporting act for the Kid Laroi's The End of the World Tour.

[14][15] Other producers that contributed to the album include Alexander 23, Underscores,[15] Rodaidh McDonald, Nick Ferraro, Michael Pollack, and the Monsters & Strangerz.

[20] While Glaive understands people calling the album "a big sonic departure", he believed it's the same idea as his previous work: "It’s energetic and there's vocal layers; it does hit the same points."

"[8] Flood Magazine's Will Schube wrote that the album "builds from the early tenets of hyperpop but moves toward rock, rap, electro, and beyond" and called Glaive's lyricism "as personal as ever".

[26] Martyn Young of Dork said that the record shows Glaive "Trying to navigate growing up and finding his way in the world" and "highlights how far he's come and the sonic evolution of his music.

[15] Rishi Shah of Clash wrote that the album is a "journey of self-discovery" and sees Glaive "explore the shroud of suburbia, edging to move on from his hometown, working through the doubts life throws at him without losing sight of the bigger picture".

[15] A pop-punk track, "17250" drew comparisons to Machine Gun Kelly and contains a "massive, singalong arena chorus" according to Kim,[21] while Shutler said it "wrestles with heartbreak".

[8] "Pardee Urgent Care" is an indie folk track that "looks at a toxic relationship through a rose-tinted lens" and finishes with a guitar solo.

[8] The penultimate track, the pop-punk "The Good The Bad The Olga", celebrates having nothing left to lose and "begs for a cathartic moshpit [sic]".

[8][12][24] Kim described the sound collage closing track "2005 Barbie Doll" as the strangest song in Glaive's discography and called it "weirdly compelling.

[34] With the exception of "I'm Nothing That's All I Am", each single was accompanied by a music video shot in Tbilisi, Georgia and directed by Adrian Vilagomez as a part of a trilogy.

[39] Critics enjoyed Glaive's ability to successfully express youthful emotions,[15][21][22] but some considered it a downgrade when compared to his previous work and felt negative about his departure from hyperpop.

[24] Writing for Dork, Martyn Young said that the album "highlights how far he's come and the sonic evolution of his music" and Glaive "[brims] with confidence and an innate bratty exuberance".

[22] In a review for NME, Ali Shutler wrote that "Glaive isn’t done breaking new ground" and called the album "a modern take on bratty emo" and "complex.

"[8] Colin Joyce of Pitchfork wrote that, at the album's best, it "captures the ecstatic, uncomfortable intensity of the joy and turmoil of being young", but felt some moments were naïve or overly simplistic.

He further commented that "the album struggles to retain the intimacy of his earlier releases as it delivers a more palatable sound" and felt negative about his shift into a more emo direction.