I can't get enough of Rise Against's new album (well, 2006 anyway).
I can appreciate Rise Against because while they are indeed a mainstream band, with lots o' radio singles that KROQ plays over and over again till you want to puke, they have enough punk cred to tour with Bad Religion. That, at least, says SOMETHING. And while the majority of "punk" bands today that actually get radio play fall more in line with the bubblegum punk movement (fuck you, Blink 182), in which pop sensibility is the ONLY discernible trait of the music, Rise Against sticks to a more classic format and actually infuse their music with some MEANING. Politics of a variety of sorts make up a good chunk of the lyrical content, but there are plenty of more personal songs dealing with love and life in general. Thankfully, though, Tim McIlrath manages NOT to come across like a whiny brat (see: Panic at the Disco, The Academy Is, Fallout Boy, etc) while still emoting as though he really does indeed feel the words he's singing. I think his vocals are probably one of my favorite aspects of the band, because his range is pretty damned decent and he knows how to cover all the bases. Soft and melodic, belting it, scratchy and frantic, balls out screaming... the man covers it all.
What I've heard of the new album is excellent. The only reason I haven't listened all the way through it yet is because I can only listen to so many of the songs before I'm dying to hear "Prayer of the Refugee" and "Ready to Fall" again. Those two songs (both of which are the singles released so far) are just... excellent, especially "Prayer". Few songs can get me pumped up enough to want to throw down my cool exterior and jump around like a lunatic, but this one does it every fucking time. It's one of those "Fuck you asshole, I don't need your kind of help" kind of songs, which is always fun, but this one manages to not be "just another one like that" (see: Linkin Park).
Well I'm not feeling incredibly eloquent or descriptive right now, so I'll leave it at that. Go check out the album, The Sufferer and the Witness, then follow it up with Siren Song of the Counter Culture. You'll be glad you did.
Unless of course you don't like that sort of thing, in which case you can just fuck off.
-C.
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Life, with an in(j/f)ection of pop culture.
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1 comment:
You have a cool exterior? Is it hiding under your coconut bra?
You understand my theory on LP. I'm fairly sure that the reason they appeal to so many people is because it lets them explore their "aggressive", "rocker" selves without having to admit it. In the end the reason we like or do not like certain songs is because they amplify some thing we are, or are trying to achieve.
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