If ever there was a year to release a political punk album it was 2008, when the U.S. was consumed by the wildest presidential campaign in modern history. It seems like the perfect backdrop for Rise Against to release Appeal to Reason, their third major-label record, and in a way it is -- certainly, the group rages against the moral decay rotting the core of the U.S. on the opening "Collapse (Post-Amerika)," just as they strike out against the slow dumbing down of America on "Re-Education (Of Labor)" and tell Iraqi soldier stories on "Hero of War." The latter showcases the acoustic guitars that helped goose 2006's The Sufferer & the Witness into the Billboard Top Ten but the rest boast the manic rapid-fire hardcore delivery that hearkens back to Rise Against's politically minded forefathers Bad Religion. This balance of plaintive modern folk and carefully traditional protest punk is offset by Rise Against's increasingly strong fondness for heavy, slick production, the kind where the rhythms are too tight and the guitars overdriven and clean, the kind where it sounds more like '80s metal than '80s punk. Rise Against is hardly the only modern punk band to be weighed down by this contradiction -- it's entirely too devoted on chops and gear, Guitar Center punk -- but it stings a little more with them as their ambitions, smarts, and skills are higher than their peers. They seem like they shouldn't have such a beefy, big sound, particularly as it obscures their message, giving the group a weird dichotomy: they are clean, accomplished musicians and sincere, socially conscious rockers but those two halves don't complement each other well, at least not on the well-intentioned Appeal to Reason.
I have mixed feelings about this album. Appeal to Reason does live up to the hype—I'd say it's one of the most hyped albums of the year so far—yet it's still somehow not quite as strong as I expected. What's good about it is the songs and the performances. Opening track "Collapse (Post-Amerika)" sounds like a [...] Related posts:The Stills - Oceans Will Rise Review When I saw The Stills in c
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I know I already posted this... but Blogger took it down because they got a DMCA take down notice... which makes no fucking sense since I did not post any songs off the album (I had a song off of an old Rise Against album on Fat Wreck)... which leads me to believe that it was taken down because it's a less than favorable review. So RIAA/Interscope Records: Fuck off, you have no jurisdiction.
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Rise Against used to be one of the most prominent, promising melodic hardcore bands and one of my personal favorites... These days, Rise Against are one of the most prominent Nickleback / Thrice cover band around. It's a shame too, because I had such high hopes for "Appeal To Reason". Sure, "Siren Songs of the Counter Culture" sucked, but the following "The Sufferer and the Witness" was a
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Rise Against have a new single "Savior" out off of their album Appeal To Reason (Happy Birthday Andrea). It's just simply awesome. We love this band and you must see them live. They're finishing up a tour with Rancid now and playing Lollapalooza on August 8th before heading to the ...
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Thanks to Rise Against and all the awesome people at Total Assault, we're able to bring you another REALLY COOL prize pack to give away. For one week only, we will be giving away Rise Against's current hit album Appeal To Reason on VINYL and CD! It's a great album, ...
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I have mixed feelings about this album. Appeal to Reason does live up to the hype—I'd say it's one of the most hyped albums of the year so far—yet it's still somehow not quite as strong as I expected. What's good about it is the songs and the performances. Opening track "Collapse (Post-Amerika)" sounds like a [...] Related posts:The Stills - Oceans Will Rise Review When I saw The Stills in c
More >
Rise Against used to be one of the most prominent, promising melodic hardcore bands and one of my personal favorites... These days, Rise Against are one of the most prominent Nickleback / Thrice cover band around. It's a shame too, because I had such high hopes for "Appeal To Reason". Sure, "Siren Songs of the Counter Culture" sucked, but the following "The Sufferer and the Witness" was a
More >
I know I already posted this... but Blogger took it down because they got a DMCA take down notice... which makes no fucking sense since I did not post any songs off the album (I had a song off of an old Rise Against album on Fat Wreck)... which leads me to believe that it was taken down because it's a less than favorable review. So RIAA/Interscope Records: Fuck off, you have no jurisdiction.
More >
There's a new video out for Rise Against's single "Hero Of War." It's definitely one of my favorite songs on the album. Here's a message from the band from their website. We've just completed our new video for the song "Hero Of War" off of our record, Appeal To Reason. ...
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 "Appeal to Reason")
