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Box Car Racer's album came out the other day, here is my review of it:
Imagine Blink 182, and what do you see, you see 3 stupid American punk rockers excelling themselves on the down right dirty lyrics. I have always liked Blink 182, I have every last one of their albums/demo’s including a copy of Flyswatter but those that don’t like the punk band admit that both Stay Together for the Kids and Adam’s Song are quite good. And why? Because these songs are emotional, cleverly written and well thought out songs that aren’t silly or rude but serious and thought provoking.
Now two members of Blink 182 Tom Delong and Travis Barker don’t wish to be remembered as dirty punk rockers, they can be serious musicians and instead of changing the multi-million dollar idea behind Blink 182 they start a new band, Box Car Racer. So imagine Stay Together For the Kids, combine it with heavier guitar noises and you’ll get exactly what Box Car Racer is all about. Tom and Travis join forces with David Kennedy and Anthony Celestino and formed the band, but enough about the history and the members lets get down to business, what is the album like and is it any different to Blink 182.
Well oppositionists point out that nearly the entire Blink 182 team is here the only one who isn’t does make a guest vocalist appearance (Mark Hoppus), they also point out that its still punk and that the vocals sound the same. Well of course the vocals sound the same because it’s the same singer, the songs are far more serious than anything Blink 182 and the heavier sections are far more frequent than in Blink songs. So no this isn’t Blink 182, every criticism of the Blink has been rectified and this is one stunning album that looks set to change my life.
1: I Feel So
The single is out July 8th and this is one of the greater songs, emotional, sad and somewhat happy. Similar to Blink’s quite songs in many ways this song is excellent. The intro is larger than off the Tele but this isn’t negative in any way, it is a great song filled with brilliant guitar rifts and thought provoking lyrics.
2: All Systems Go
I downloaded this song via Kazaa and I wasn’t overly impressed (still good) but the album version is incredible, I really like this song the verse’s are a little to be desired but the tune is impressive and the chorus is great. Not as good as I Feel So but damn close, “we are the underrated all forgotten kids who made it”, classic.
3: Watch The World
Now this is very good, Tom removes the accent used in the last song and goes back to his classic American styled voice. The beginning verse is long and the song begins to seem like a quite moving song, but as it progresses the heavier style moves in and this is great as it is still a moving song. Songs like this prove to anyone this isn’t simply Blink 182 with a new name. Another incredible piece.
4: Tiny Voices
Not as good as the above, but considering how good they are it doesn’t really matter. A little more Blink in here but still no silliness, As the Song reaches half way the song gets quieter and it begins to get a lot better, soon “tiny voices” seep in before the quite section restarts and this makes it go some way to living up to its prequels. “Everybody will be let down”.
5: Cat Like Thief
You have got to love this song, as it starts you may question how good it is but soon enough Tom enters and the song turns into one of the best on the album. A really amazing catchy tune and brilliant vocals add the mystery of the song that will make you smile. Magical is the best word I can use to sum it up, almost choir like sections, and this would be a brilliant song to end a gig on, two thumbs up.
6: And I
Nice into begins a Blink style song about girls and love but this is far more emotional than the lyrics that can be found in blink’s songs. Some nice drumming by Travis and classic Blink guitar sections. The song isn’t the best but its far from bad, worth a listen.
7: Letters To God
A much moodier song, a moving piece that I’m not sure that I like, the ending does hit with an incredible heavy bout of guitaring that goes someway into adding some extra emotion to it, damn good.
8: My First Punk Song
A much faster heavier song than anything on the album, I don’t like it, blink lyrics mixed with box car sounds, and it ending with “I’ve got no dick” I think you get the picture. Worst song probably.
9: Sorrow
Nothing special like shown in I Feel So or Cat like Thief, nothing wrong with it but it does sound very bland compared with other box car songs, heavy bits mixed with slower sections and emotional lyrics, nothing out of the ordinary, nothing bad but noting particularly good to keep you listening. Better than My First Punk Song at least.
10: There Is
Ah now this is more like it, brilliantly emotional, sounds as if it straight from the heart. It isn’t heavy but it is very good, brings a tear to your eye a nice piece about the feelings someone has for a girl. It is much better than Blink 182’s “She’s Hot” it is about love and feelings and is very nice to listen to. Nice one Box Car.
11: The End With You
Similar to There Is, emotional and thought provoking lyrics, heavy chorus, slow verses not much different to average Box Car stuff but there is an added something here that does make it slightly above There Is which I can’t put my finger on, the chorus is nice so maybe that’s it.
12: Elevator
Nothing special for most of the song but when the duel voices enter you realize it hit harder than you original thought. It isn’t the best on the album but it has its moments of smiles and clever lyrics.
13: Instrumental
Guess what this is J that’s right and instrumental, don’t really know what to say, the triangle style noises are nice touch but the heavy tune is much of the same. Alright and the ability to end abruptly, ok.
14: I Feel So (Video)
It is a cut down version of I Feel So but only slightly, the song is as good as always it did make me get the album after all. The Video is odd to say the least, toys moving on their own, children crying. Confusing definatly but oddly watchable, intriguing and sad similar to the lyrics of the song, works well.
So what do I think overall? Probably the best Punk album on the market, not as silly as Jerry Finn’s Sum 41, not as silly as his Blink 182’s. It is his emotional punk band, incredible.
“Cause I Feel so Mad, I feel so angry, I feel so calloused, so lost confused, again I feel so cheap, so used unfaithful, lets start over lets start over”.
Dringo.
Imagine Blink 182, and what do you see, you see 3 stupid American punk rockers excelling themselves on the down right dirty lyrics. I have always liked Blink 182, I have every last one of their albums/demo’s including a copy of Flyswatter but those that don’t like the punk band admit that both Stay Together for the Kids and Adam’s Song are quite good. And why? Because these songs are emotional, cleverly written and well thought out songs that aren’t silly or rude but serious and thought provoking.
Now two members of Blink 182 Tom Delong and Travis Barker don’t wish to be remembered as dirty punk rockers, they can be serious musicians and instead of changing the multi-million dollar idea behind Blink 182 they start a new band, Box Car Racer. So imagine Stay Together For the Kids, combine it with heavier guitar noises and you’ll get exactly what Box Car Racer is all about. Tom and Travis join forces with David Kennedy and Anthony Celestino and formed the band, but enough about the history and the members lets get down to business, what is the album like and is it any different to Blink 182.
Well oppositionists point out that nearly the entire Blink 182 team is here the only one who isn’t does make a guest vocalist appearance (Mark Hoppus), they also point out that its still punk and that the vocals sound the same. Well of course the vocals sound the same because it’s the same singer, the songs are far more serious than anything Blink 182 and the heavier sections are far more frequent than in Blink songs. So no this isn’t Blink 182, every criticism of the Blink has been rectified and this is one stunning album that looks set to change my life.
1: I Feel So
The single is out July 8th and this is one of the greater songs, emotional, sad and somewhat happy. Similar to Blink’s quite songs in many ways this song is excellent. The intro is larger than off the Tele but this isn’t negative in any way, it is a great song filled with brilliant guitar rifts and thought provoking lyrics.
2: All Systems Go
I downloaded this song via Kazaa and I wasn’t overly impressed (still good) but the album version is incredible, I really like this song the verse’s are a little to be desired but the tune is impressive and the chorus is great. Not as good as I Feel So but damn close, “we are the underrated all forgotten kids who made it”, classic.
3: Watch The World
Now this is very good, Tom removes the accent used in the last song and goes back to his classic American styled voice. The beginning verse is long and the song begins to seem like a quite moving song, but as it progresses the heavier style moves in and this is great as it is still a moving song. Songs like this prove to anyone this isn’t simply Blink 182 with a new name. Another incredible piece.
4: Tiny Voices
Not as good as the above, but considering how good they are it doesn’t really matter. A little more Blink in here but still no silliness, As the Song reaches half way the song gets quieter and it begins to get a lot better, soon “tiny voices” seep in before the quite section restarts and this makes it go some way to living up to its prequels. “Everybody will be let down”.
5: Cat Like Thief
You have got to love this song, as it starts you may question how good it is but soon enough Tom enters and the song turns into one of the best on the album. A really amazing catchy tune and brilliant vocals add the mystery of the song that will make you smile. Magical is the best word I can use to sum it up, almost choir like sections, and this would be a brilliant song to end a gig on, two thumbs up.
6: And I
Nice into begins a Blink style song about girls and love but this is far more emotional than the lyrics that can be found in blink’s songs. Some nice drumming by Travis and classic Blink guitar sections. The song isn’t the best but its far from bad, worth a listen.
7: Letters To God
A much moodier song, a moving piece that I’m not sure that I like, the ending does hit with an incredible heavy bout of guitaring that goes someway into adding some extra emotion to it, damn good.
8: My First Punk Song
A much faster heavier song than anything on the album, I don’t like it, blink lyrics mixed with box car sounds, and it ending with “I’ve got no dick” I think you get the picture. Worst song probably.
9: Sorrow
Nothing special like shown in I Feel So or Cat like Thief, nothing wrong with it but it does sound very bland compared with other box car songs, heavy bits mixed with slower sections and emotional lyrics, nothing out of the ordinary, nothing bad but noting particularly good to keep you listening. Better than My First Punk Song at least.
10: There Is
Ah now this is more like it, brilliantly emotional, sounds as if it straight from the heart. It isn’t heavy but it is very good, brings a tear to your eye a nice piece about the feelings someone has for a girl. It is much better than Blink 182’s “She’s Hot” it is about love and feelings and is very nice to listen to. Nice one Box Car.
11: The End With You
Similar to There Is, emotional and thought provoking lyrics, heavy chorus, slow verses not much different to average Box Car stuff but there is an added something here that does make it slightly above There Is which I can’t put my finger on, the chorus is nice so maybe that’s it.
12: Elevator
Nothing special for most of the song but when the duel voices enter you realize it hit harder than you original thought. It isn’t the best on the album but it has its moments of smiles and clever lyrics.
13: Instrumental
Guess what this is J that’s right and instrumental, don’t really know what to say, the triangle style noises are nice touch but the heavy tune is much of the same. Alright and the ability to end abruptly, ok.
14: I Feel So (Video)
It is a cut down version of I Feel So but only slightly, the song is as good as always it did make me get the album after all. The Video is odd to say the least, toys moving on their own, children crying. Confusing definatly but oddly watchable, intriguing and sad similar to the lyrics of the song, works well.
So what do I think overall? Probably the best Punk album on the market, not as silly as Jerry Finn’s Sum 41, not as silly as his Blink 182’s. It is his emotional punk band, incredible.
“Cause I Feel so Mad, I feel so angry, I feel so calloused, so lost confused, again I feel so cheap, so used unfaithful, lets start over lets start over”.
Dringo.
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Mouldy Cheese wrote:
> The Offspring rock.
> Smash was good, Ixnay was great.
> But then...even on those albs, they insist on putting stupid Sum41
> soundalike tracks on. Which is why they will never put out a classic
> album.
Which songs exactly do you mean...? Smash was virtually all straight up punk rock, with some ska thrown in... ('What Happened To You?'). Ixnay was pretty much the same except for the pretty crap ska on 'Don't Pick It Up'. None of it was really cheesy pop-punk, although the Offspring did try to do ska and didn't always succeed... (infact they crashed and burned on a few tracks...)
> The Offspring rock.
> Smash was good, Ixnay was great.
> But then...even on those albs, they insist on putting stupid Sum41
> soundalike tracks on. Which is why they will never put out a classic
> album.
Which songs exactly do you mean...? Smash was virtually all straight up punk rock, with some ska thrown in... ('What Happened To You?'). Ixnay was pretty much the same except for the pretty crap ska on 'Don't Pick It Up'. None of it was really cheesy pop-punk, although the Offspring did try to do ska and didn't always succeed... (infact they crashed and burned on a few tracks...)
Yeah, Dookie ROCKS!
Especially Longview, Basket Case, Welcome to Paradise and When I Come Around.
Especially Longview, Basket Case, Welcome to Paradise and When I Come Around.
Dookie was probably Green Day's best album, and Warning was pretty terrible after first listen. It DID grow on my slightly, but it diverged from classic Green Day, and that was a bad transition. My favorite overall songs are:
Minority
Waiting
Warning
When I Come Around
Time Of Your Life
That's all I can remember ;D
Minority
Waiting
Warning
When I Come Around
Time Of Your Life
That's all I can remember ;D
The Offspring rock.
At least, pre-Americana they do. Pretty Fly For A White guy should never, ever have been heard by anyone.
Smash was good, Ixnay was great.
But then...even on those albs, they insist on putting stupid Sum41 soundalike tracks on. Which is why they will never put out a classic album.
At least, pre-Americana they do. Pretty Fly For A White guy should never, ever have been heard by anyone.
Smash was good, Ixnay was great.
But then...even on those albs, they insist on putting stupid Sum41 soundalike tracks on. Which is why they will never put out a classic album.
Stryke wrote:
Minority,> Waiting,
Those two rule, unreservedly.
Minority,> Waiting,
Those two rule, unreservedly.
Good tracks off Warning: Church on Sundays, Castaway, Minority, Waiting, Macy's Day Parade. The rest are OK.
Cross Blink with old Greenday, and thats Warning. Which is why I like it.
Cross Blink with old Greenday, and thats Warning. Which is why I like it.
Warning was not good at all. Alrightish songs, but way too far up the Cheese-O-Meter (tm) scale.
The best Green Day albums for me were Dookie and....well, i've only heard 'Brain Stew' off Insomniac, but i've got Nimrod and its pretty good too.
Haven't listen to any Green Day for yonks, though. More into Smashing Pumpkins, Sonic Youth, Radiohead and Pixies right now.
The best Green Day albums for me were Dookie and....well, i've only heard 'Brain Stew' off Insomniac, but i've got Nimrod and its pretty good too.
Haven't listen to any Green Day for yonks, though. More into Smashing Pumpkins, Sonic Youth, Radiohead and Pixies right now.
Stryke wrote:
> Errr, yeah, Offspring suck, always have. "Pretty fly for a white
> guy"? Yeah, fook off. Greenday, I've always liked. Prefer Dookie
> and Warning to Nimrod.
Offspring? C'mon, Smash and Ixnay on the Hombre were great...
Also, I seem to be about the only person who likes Nimrod! :D I reckon it's great, tracks like 'Platypus (I Hate You)' and 'Take Back' kicked @nus, and showed Green Day were capable of being aggressive... I reckon Green Day need to make sure their next album has plenty of variety... if you didn't like slower/ poppier songs, Warning was not good. Though it has grown on me.
> Errr, yeah, Offspring suck, always have. "Pretty fly for a white
> guy"? Yeah, fook off. Greenday, I've always liked. Prefer Dookie
> and Warning to Nimrod.
Offspring? C'mon, Smash and Ixnay on the Hombre were great...
Also, I seem to be about the only person who likes Nimrod! :D I reckon it's great, tracks like 'Platypus (I Hate You)' and 'Take Back' kicked @nus, and showed Green Day were capable of being aggressive... I reckon Green Day need to make sure their next album has plenty of variety... if you didn't like slower/ poppier songs, Warning was not good. Though it has grown on me.
Sibs wrote:
>
> Nah, Offspring WERE good, Green Day are still quite good in their
> way...
Well....
In my book Green Day are the original and best modern punk band, even though I hardly ever listen to them anymore, and, although 'Warning' was sickeningly cheesy, I think they pretty much outshine Offspring.
That said, Green Day did blatently copy The Jam, The Clash and Sex Pistols, all of whom are the original punk pioneers.
>
> Nah, Offspring WERE good, Green Day are still quite good in their
> way...
Well....
In my book Green Day are the original and best modern punk band, even though I hardly ever listen to them anymore, and, although 'Warning' was sickeningly cheesy, I think they pretty much outshine Offspring.
That said, Green Day did blatently copy The Jam, The Clash and Sex Pistols, all of whom are the original punk pioneers.
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