Post by JB on Jul 1, 2006 19:42:43 GMT -5
Let me start by establishing my bias. The Unravelling was an outstanding hardcore (yes children, hardcore, not post-hardcore or whatever you're calling emo these days) record and I'm a firm believer that Revolutions Per Minute is one of the best five records ever written and while Siren Songs of the Counter Culture was a very good CD, for me it just didn't meet up to the standards RPM set back in 2003. For me Siren Songs just felt like a bit of a watered down version of RPM, but it was still a very good album which had plenty of strong moments. I should probably also say that I believe a band’s record is entirely their own, and everyone will have opinions and reactions to what the artists have done and that this review is purely my personal interpretation and opinions of the record.
So here we are in 2006, 2 years since Siren Songs, with a new Rise Against album: The Sufferer and the Witness. The whole things roars off to an anthemic start after the words "this is noise", presenting us with the first track, “Chamber the Cartridge”, which offers fist pumping hooks and verses in a similar vein to those found in RPM's "Last Chance Blueprint". These qualities, coupled with intelligent, environmentally concerned lyrics (Can we be saved, has the damage all been done? Is it too late to reverse what we've become?) present a very apt starting track that’s bound to become a classic.
After “Chamber the Cartridge” we move onto what I believe to be the best track on the whole record and one of the band’s best tracks of their career so far: “Injection”. This is the ELEMENT of Rise Against, “Amber Changing”/”Torches” style verses and a surging pre-chorus which blasts us into a chorus so energetic and infectious that if the government knew about this they’d probably be quarantining record stores across the world as we speak. This track pretty much takes the best elements of Siren Songs and blends them into something that would have been written for RPM. This is hot, this is very hot.
Following “Injection” is the first “single” off Sufferer and the Witness, “Ready to Fall”. While this is a solid track it really baffles me as to why this has been chosen to be the single and not “Injection”. The trend on the record so far seems to be to mix RPM style verses with Siren Song style choruses, and this track is not an exception,. Even though this track is not as strong as “Chamber the Cartridge” and “Injection” in my opinion, it is still a good track, probably more reminiscent of Siren Songs than RPM.
Next on the playlist is “Bricks”, a blazing little one and a half minute song which would probably be best analysed as a melodic version of “Dead Ringers”, though it is quite unlike anything the band have written before. A good track, but not the strongest on the CD.
Track five, “Under the Knife” is a bit more melodic than the songs that precede it but still packs quite a punch. The hooky melodic chorus is bound to turn the heads of melodic punkers, but it’s not my favourite. It’s at this point we start to wonder what else this record has left up its sleeve…
… And then we’re bitch-slapped by the excellent “Prayer of the Refugee”. Starting out as a quiet slow brooding song, the time changes and we’re launched into a blazing chorus with Tim belting out his own personal declaration of independence in a hybrid Rise Against chorus which takes the best elements from Siren Songs and RPM. Though the time change might seem a little odd to start with, after a couple of listens it’s almost seamless. An RPM style bridge and a snappy little vocal line solo make this little package all the sweeter.
And then comes “Drones”, which is (in my opinion) possibly the second best track on the CD. Brilliant charging drums, energetic duelling guitars (which take advantage of slicing melodic octave chords) and absolutely top-par vocal parts make this song a classic from the first listen. Like “Injection”, this is Rise at their best.
Track eight, “The Approaching Curve” is a semi-spoken word song. It’s alright, it’s just not brilliant. The melodic chorus is a bit so-so to me, but I’ll still hum along to it if it’s on. What makes this song is the lyrics really, which read like a novel with the verses describing the scene and the choruses expressing the thoughts of the protagonist.
The following track, “Worth Dying For”, is a solid track that would fit perfectly on RPM, and while not quite on the level of “Injection” and “Drones” offers an energetic song with a chorus you’re not going to be forgetting any time soon. A keeper.
After “Worth Dying For” fades to silence we’re attacked by the brilliant “Behind Closed Doors”. This little gem is a riot from the first chord and provides a brilliant mix of melody and energy, taking advantage of jolty verses, superbly written lead guitar parts and anthemic lyrics to ensure that this is a track you’ll want to play on the repeat over and over and over and… You get the picture.
A track like “Behind Closed Doors” is a nasty one to follow really. The listener is pumped and eager to raise more fists. Maybe this is why I feel that “Roadside” is a bit of a disappointing track. Don’t get me wrong, this is a well written track but it’s just not really what I was expecting to hear on the album after Tim was quoted saying “There won’t be any acoustic guitar on this record”. “Roadside” is a clean guitar and strings song that to me would be better suited to a brooding scene in a movie than on a Rise Against record. Maybe I’m just cranky because lots of little scene girls started singing “Swing Life Away” after it had been on “Punk Goes Acoustic” for ages. This is a track to be listened to when you’re in the mood for something a bit slower.
When “Roadside” has come to an end and you hear the first surging chords of “The Good Left Undone” you know the CD is getting back on the energetic note it left us on after “Behind Closed Doors”. This track is quite unique, and, like “Prayer of the Refugee” uses a time change when it goes into the chorus, though this time the song slows down. The brief but atmospheric bridge/breakdown offers a perfect way to break up this song before it trails off into what I’d probably call the “theme tune” of the album. An ominous, somewhat randomly placed instrumental of perfectly simple, catchy lead guitar, prodding bass, muted rhythm guitar and spaced out drums that feels really well written, and adds a nice sense of enigma to what will come next.
When the theme has faded away a jumpy palm muted guitar leads us into the albums closer, “Survive”. This track is HIGHLY reminiscent of “Rumours of My Demise Have Been Greatly Exaggerated“ and closes the album in a way that said track closed Siren Songs. The uniqueness of this song comes from the re-emergence of the aforementioned “theme tune” which was tagged to the end of “The Good Left Undone” which adds an already familiar atmosphere to the track and makes it a very good closer. I should also note that this song is the clearest opportunity you’ll get to hear Chad Price’s superb backup vocals (if you don’t know who Chad Price is put “Mass Nerder” on your list of records to buy and thank me later).
So what does this all add up to? A record that’s somewhere in-between RPM and Siren Songs of the counter culture for the most part. Although, as I said at the start of this review, The Sufferer and the Witness doesn’t match up to the greatness of the Fat Wreck release Revolutions Per Minute, it’s still a great record and if you’re a fan of Rise Against at all it’s definitely worth a purchase as it has some of the best tracks of their career so far on it. The band really did well to re-energise their sound on this record and I think the fact that Bill Stevenson and Jason Livermore had their mitts on the production of this record really shows as well, and that they possibly helped rekindle a fire that burned down a bit when the band recorded Siren Songs. Hearing Bill and Chad do vocals on this record is a real kick for me and I’m sure it will be for any other Descendents, ALL, Black Flag, Drag The River, Only Crime or Last (and about fifty other bands) fan. If I was going to be critical about anything on this record it would definitely be the lack of a hardcore song. Even Siren Songs had “State of the Union” and I was looking forward to hearing something in the vein of “Great Awakening” or “To the Core”. This CD is an essential record for any melodic hardcore fans that DEFINITELY should not be ignored just because it doesn’t quite match up to RPM.
Eight and three quarters out of ten.
So here we are in 2006, 2 years since Siren Songs, with a new Rise Against album: The Sufferer and the Witness. The whole things roars off to an anthemic start after the words "this is noise", presenting us with the first track, “Chamber the Cartridge”, which offers fist pumping hooks and verses in a similar vein to those found in RPM's "Last Chance Blueprint". These qualities, coupled with intelligent, environmentally concerned lyrics (Can we be saved, has the damage all been done? Is it too late to reverse what we've become?) present a very apt starting track that’s bound to become a classic.
After “Chamber the Cartridge” we move onto what I believe to be the best track on the whole record and one of the band’s best tracks of their career so far: “Injection”. This is the ELEMENT of Rise Against, “Amber Changing”/”Torches” style verses and a surging pre-chorus which blasts us into a chorus so energetic and infectious that if the government knew about this they’d probably be quarantining record stores across the world as we speak. This track pretty much takes the best elements of Siren Songs and blends them into something that would have been written for RPM. This is hot, this is very hot.
Following “Injection” is the first “single” off Sufferer and the Witness, “Ready to Fall”. While this is a solid track it really baffles me as to why this has been chosen to be the single and not “Injection”. The trend on the record so far seems to be to mix RPM style verses with Siren Song style choruses, and this track is not an exception,. Even though this track is not as strong as “Chamber the Cartridge” and “Injection” in my opinion, it is still a good track, probably more reminiscent of Siren Songs than RPM.
Next on the playlist is “Bricks”, a blazing little one and a half minute song which would probably be best analysed as a melodic version of “Dead Ringers”, though it is quite unlike anything the band have written before. A good track, but not the strongest on the CD.
Track five, “Under the Knife” is a bit more melodic than the songs that precede it but still packs quite a punch. The hooky melodic chorus is bound to turn the heads of melodic punkers, but it’s not my favourite. It’s at this point we start to wonder what else this record has left up its sleeve…
… And then we’re bitch-slapped by the excellent “Prayer of the Refugee”. Starting out as a quiet slow brooding song, the time changes and we’re launched into a blazing chorus with Tim belting out his own personal declaration of independence in a hybrid Rise Against chorus which takes the best elements from Siren Songs and RPM. Though the time change might seem a little odd to start with, after a couple of listens it’s almost seamless. An RPM style bridge and a snappy little vocal line solo make this little package all the sweeter.
And then comes “Drones”, which is (in my opinion) possibly the second best track on the CD. Brilliant charging drums, energetic duelling guitars (which take advantage of slicing melodic octave chords) and absolutely top-par vocal parts make this song a classic from the first listen. Like “Injection”, this is Rise at their best.
Track eight, “The Approaching Curve” is a semi-spoken word song. It’s alright, it’s just not brilliant. The melodic chorus is a bit so-so to me, but I’ll still hum along to it if it’s on. What makes this song is the lyrics really, which read like a novel with the verses describing the scene and the choruses expressing the thoughts of the protagonist.
The following track, “Worth Dying For”, is a solid track that would fit perfectly on RPM, and while not quite on the level of “Injection” and “Drones” offers an energetic song with a chorus you’re not going to be forgetting any time soon. A keeper.
After “Worth Dying For” fades to silence we’re attacked by the brilliant “Behind Closed Doors”. This little gem is a riot from the first chord and provides a brilliant mix of melody and energy, taking advantage of jolty verses, superbly written lead guitar parts and anthemic lyrics to ensure that this is a track you’ll want to play on the repeat over and over and over and… You get the picture.
A track like “Behind Closed Doors” is a nasty one to follow really. The listener is pumped and eager to raise more fists. Maybe this is why I feel that “Roadside” is a bit of a disappointing track. Don’t get me wrong, this is a well written track but it’s just not really what I was expecting to hear on the album after Tim was quoted saying “There won’t be any acoustic guitar on this record”. “Roadside” is a clean guitar and strings song that to me would be better suited to a brooding scene in a movie than on a Rise Against record. Maybe I’m just cranky because lots of little scene girls started singing “Swing Life Away” after it had been on “Punk Goes Acoustic” for ages. This is a track to be listened to when you’re in the mood for something a bit slower.
When “Roadside” has come to an end and you hear the first surging chords of “The Good Left Undone” you know the CD is getting back on the energetic note it left us on after “Behind Closed Doors”. This track is quite unique, and, like “Prayer of the Refugee” uses a time change when it goes into the chorus, though this time the song slows down. The brief but atmospheric bridge/breakdown offers a perfect way to break up this song before it trails off into what I’d probably call the “theme tune” of the album. An ominous, somewhat randomly placed instrumental of perfectly simple, catchy lead guitar, prodding bass, muted rhythm guitar and spaced out drums that feels really well written, and adds a nice sense of enigma to what will come next.
When the theme has faded away a jumpy palm muted guitar leads us into the albums closer, “Survive”. This track is HIGHLY reminiscent of “Rumours of My Demise Have Been Greatly Exaggerated“ and closes the album in a way that said track closed Siren Songs. The uniqueness of this song comes from the re-emergence of the aforementioned “theme tune” which was tagged to the end of “The Good Left Undone” which adds an already familiar atmosphere to the track and makes it a very good closer. I should also note that this song is the clearest opportunity you’ll get to hear Chad Price’s superb backup vocals (if you don’t know who Chad Price is put “Mass Nerder” on your list of records to buy and thank me later).
So what does this all add up to? A record that’s somewhere in-between RPM and Siren Songs of the counter culture for the most part. Although, as I said at the start of this review, The Sufferer and the Witness doesn’t match up to the greatness of the Fat Wreck release Revolutions Per Minute, it’s still a great record and if you’re a fan of Rise Against at all it’s definitely worth a purchase as it has some of the best tracks of their career so far on it. The band really did well to re-energise their sound on this record and I think the fact that Bill Stevenson and Jason Livermore had their mitts on the production of this record really shows as well, and that they possibly helped rekindle a fire that burned down a bit when the band recorded Siren Songs. Hearing Bill and Chad do vocals on this record is a real kick for me and I’m sure it will be for any other Descendents, ALL, Black Flag, Drag The River, Only Crime or Last (and about fifty other bands) fan. If I was going to be critical about anything on this record it would definitely be the lack of a hardcore song. Even Siren Songs had “State of the Union” and I was looking forward to hearing something in the vein of “Great Awakening” or “To the Core”. This CD is an essential record for any melodic hardcore fans that DEFINITELY should not be ignored just because it doesn’t quite match up to RPM.
Eight and three quarters out of ten.