Against Me! “White Crosses” Review
Not only was New Wave Against Me!‘s major label debut (Sire), but it stands as both the most commercially and critically successful album in the band’s career. The 10 song set was produced by Butch Vig (Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Green Day), debuted at the #57 spot on the Billboard 200, and would eventually be named the best album of 2007 by Spin Magazine. Refusing to break the mold with the band’s full-length follow-up, White Crosses, Against Me! once again enlisted Vig to man the boards for the release. Actually, the only considerable change in the recording—again to be released via Sire, again running 10 songs deep—is the absence of drummer Warren Oakes, who was replaced by George Rebelo (Hot Water Music) following his departure from the band last June. With that exception White Crosses does little to disrupt both the sound and the direction that the band took with New Wave; that being polished folk-punk, just as primed and ready for mainstream rock radio as it is the next generation of angry, distraught youth.
The album’s title track kicks things off with a plodding rhythm that courses over Tom Gabel’s passionate lyrics. Touching on a common theme which runs throughout White Crosses, Gabel repeats “White crosses on the church lawn, I want to smash them all” during the song’s chorus, a refrain which embodies a lot of the anger and confusion that is revealed over the following nine tracks. “I Was a Teenage Anarchist” continues with the feeling of “Crosses” as it lyrically sets forth the symptoms of becoming increasingly jaded and detached as the illusion of one’s beliefs becomes shattered through age.
“Because of the Shame” recalls a story of a broken relationship, set over a rolling piano line that deeply accentuates the rumbling guitar which drifts above it. The lost love theme is renewed later in “We’re Breaking Up;” both songs resigned to the idea that once there is love, neither death nor a torn relationship can completely erase it.
Perhaps it’s neither the irate nor the heartbreaking, but rather something found in between that is the most representative song of the album however. Musically “Spanish Moss” finds a happy medium amongst the songs on White Crosses as it is neither dull nor does it overwhelm sonically. It might be White Crosses‘ most accessible track, in terms of its mainstream rock sound, but the real hook lies within Gabel’s lyrics. “Let your mind conjure up old ghosts. Ride you bike through lost Florida streets. Everything we’ve said and done, can be so easily forgotten. You can always change who you are.” Here he projects a sense of hope that is woven throughout the entire record—though it’s not showcased as bluntly as it is here—while refusing to release a firm grip on the understanding of the darkness that reality often exudes.
While it’s quite clear that this was never the intent, just as with “Spanish Moss” White Crosses is far from groundbreaking. It doesn’t push boundaries musically or lyrically, and at 35 minutes it’s almost over before it’s had time to soak in. And if you’ve heard Against Me! before you shouldn’t be surprised by anything anything on the record—that’s not to say that it’s a weak release, however. Far from it, in fact. As with the band’s past efforts, White Crosses is as grounded in a strong sense of the blue-collar rock patriarchs of days gone by as it is in an honest lyrical reflection of the realities of every day life. Touching on love, death, and religion, thematically White Crosses is ultimately about learning to live each day without losing faith in yourself or those around you. Accompanying the heartfelt stories is a soundtrack perfect for approaching such a struggle.
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[Also, for those interested, here are the lyrics to the White Crosses per Tom Gabel's blog, I Feel Sick To My Stomach.]
#1) White Crosses lyrics
I wake up in the morning and I drink from the fountain. I wake up in the morning with the same unanswered questions. I don’t know what’s going to cure my unsettled stomach. Street kids collect spare change in a conch shell on the side walk; their teeth are yellow, their hair is tangled. Their minds are vapid and they laugh wild in their depravity. I’ll make my way back home to you, head north on San Marco Avenue. White crosses on the church lawn, I want to smash them all. I want to smash them all. Pony tails swinging back and forth behind beach blonde college girls out for a jog. Saint Augustine, shine your light down on me! Pop hits from the 90’s echo out of tourist filled bars. I am met with arms crossed under dirty looks, I am treated like a common thief. I’ll make my way back home to you, head north on San Marco Avenue. White crosses on the church lawn, I want to smash them all. I want to smash them all. Eaves-dropping in on conversation, I wander aimless leering at strangers. Strung out on the amphetamines that you gave to me. Eye-balled with suspicion by a pencil skirt in high heels, you realize that you’re talking to yourself. Cannon fire explodes out over the bay. I’ll make my way back home to you, head north on San Marco Avenue. White crosses on the church lawn, I want to smash them all. Looking for context and perspective, looking for some kind of distraction. White crosses on the church lawn, I want to smash them all. I want to smash them all.
#2) I Was A Teenage Anarchist lyrics
I was a teenage anarchist, looking for a revolution. I had the style, I had the ambition. I read all the authors, I knew the right slogans. There was no war but the class war. I was ready to set the world on fire. I was a teenage anarchist, looking for a revolution. Do you remember when you were young and you wanted to set the world on fire? I was a teenage anarchist, but the politics were too convenient. In the depths of their humanity all I saw was bloodless ideology. And with freedom as the doctrine, guess who was the new authority? I was a teenage anarchist, but the politics were too convenient. Do you remember when you were young and you wanted to set the world on fire? I was a teenage anarchist, but then the scene got too rigid. It was a mob mentality, they set their rifle sights on me. Narrow visions of autonomy, you want me to surrender my identity. I was a teenage anarchist, the revolution was a lie. Do you remember when you were young and you wanted to set the world on fire? I was a teenage anarchist.
#3) Because Of The Shame lyrics
We used to get high together, instead of getting high alone. I can’t remember the last time I saw you. I can’t remember the last time we talked. You left home for a fresh start, working as a waitress down in Bradenton. With my name tattoo’d into your skin. Because of the shame I associate with vulnerability I am numbing myself completely. Can you hear me right now? I watched your mother bury you today, with tears in her eyes. It wasn’t her words that shook me, it was the resemblance you shared. Don’t it feel so detached and unreal? Don’t it seem so far away? Like the past never happened, or like nothings ever changed. With your casket open in front of me, your eyes closed and your lips silent. With my name tattoo’d into your skin. Because of the shame I associate with vulnerability I am numbing myself completely. Can you hear me right now? I watched your mother bury you today, with tears in her eyes. It wasn’t her words that shook me, it was the resemblance you shared. I didn’t listen to the preacher. I couldn’t look your husband in the eyes. I’m not sure what I meant to you then, so I’m not sure what I owe you now. But if something I said hurt you I swear it was not my intention. With your name tattoo’d into my skin. Because of the shame I associate with vulnerability I am numbing myself completely.
Can you hear me right now? I watched your mother bury you today, with tears in her eyes. It wasn’t her words that shook me, it was the resemblance you shared.
#4) Suffocation lyrics
We were young heartbreakers estranged from our wealthy parents, doing key bumps in a handicap bathroom. Stoned complacent, ambivalent, mass communicating with shared subconscious. Suffocation. Modern life in the western world. Homosexual sons of unfulfilled fathers. Divorced from reality, free and young. We were bashing our brains out on a kitchen cabinet. It was a televised crucifixion. ?Suffocation. Modern life in the western world. We were star-crossed, we were destitute. Our words spoke mass destruction. We watched the sun rise in the morning. Daughters in arm, we all are orphans. Suffocation. Modern life in the western world. In the western world.
#5) We’re Breaking Up lyrics
This is the only voice I know. These are the only words I have. This is the only way I know how to say, we’re not in love anymore. It’s the same way that it’s always been, the dynamic to the relationship never changes. It’s the same way that it’s always been, the dynamic to the relationship never changes. We used to like all the same bands. We used to have all the same friends. What do we have left in common? Just shared memories of good times long since past. It’s the same way that it’s always been, the dynamic to the relationship never changes. It’s the same way that it’s always been, the dynamic to the relationship never changes. You can’t get what you want from me, and I can’t get what I need from you. This is the only voice I know. These are the only words I have. This is the only way I know how to say, we’re breaking up. It’s the same way that it’s always been. It’s the same way that it’s always been. I’m not giving up on us. I’m not giving up on us.
#6) High Pressure Low lyrics
There was a high pressure low developing off the coast of Africa, uplift in the atmosphere pushed waves across the ocean towards Antilles and Bon Air. I paced in agitation. I drew the curtains closed. I turned the air conditioner on. I pressed a warm wash cloth to my face. Somewhere out there a hurricane was coming. There’s just no future left for us to dream of, living in an era of instability. So caught up in the culture of their rivals,fear breeds in honest men. It’s a high pressure low. 7 missiles flying over the sea of japan. Tales of feral children sleeping in wolf dens. And the pious preacher commands. I hold my breath in anticipation. Into the shelter of the jungle noble savages run. Vestal virgins triumph over life long inhibitions. And I wonder, what is real? What is fiction? There’s just no future left for us to dream of, living in an era of instability. So caught up in the culture of their rivals, fear breeds in honest men. It’s a high pressure low. Would anyone forgive Robert McNamara? In retrospect he had to admit; there was mistake in going to war without first asking all the questions. Yes, Robert Strange McNamara, there are those who just cannot forget. And I wonder, have I lost my own compassion? There’s just no future left for us to dream of, living in an era of instability. So caught up in the culture of their rivals, fear breeds in honest men. It’s a high pressure low.
#7) Ache With Me lyrics
I’ve walked down high streets looking through windows. I’ve been lost in crowds of strangers. Searched record shops and cosmetic aisles, phone books, want ads, bus stops and libraries. Newspaper headlines, mannequin faces, television stations, billboard advertisements. Your voice echos in the back of my mind. I see your face when I close my eyes. Do you share the same sense of defeat? Have you realized all the things you’ll never be? Ideals turn to resentment, open minds close up with cynicism. I’ve got no judgement for you. Come on and ache with me. Through bar rooms, cafés, jail cells and court rooms. Theaters, restaurants, graveyards and churches. I’ve spent every dollar that I’ve ever earned. I’ll bleed my heart out, I’ll give every word. I’ve asked preachers, doctors and lawyers, socialites, pariahs, mothers and fathers. You may not find all that you’re after, in the end I hope it doesn’t matter. Do you share the same sense of defeat? Have you realized all the things you’ll never be? Ideals turn to resentment, open minds close up with cynicism. I’ve got no judgement for you. Come on and ache with me. Do you share the same sense of defeat? Have you realized all the things you’ll never be? I’ve got no judgement for you. Come on and ache with me.
#8) Spanish Moss lyrics
You just need to find some place to get away. You can forget your name. And there’s no need to apologize. It could be a good life. It could be such a very good life. We could find a place for just me and you. Need some place to stay safe, need some place to stay safe and warm. Why don’t we deserve the same? You just need to find some place to get away. You can forget your name. And there’s no need to apologize. Look into the Spanish moss. Let your mind conjure up old ghosts. Ride you bike through lost Florida streets. Everything we’ve said and done, can be so easily forgotten. You can always change who you are. You just need to find some place to get away. You can forget your name. And there’s no need to apologize. ?I caught a glimpse of this life, it could be such a very good life. We could find a place for just me and you. But it’s not yours to keep. Yeah, the truth will tear your heart out. In a world run by gangsters you’re stuck standing in a bread line. You just need to find some place to get away. You can forget your name. And there’s no need to apologize.
#9) Rapid Decompression lyrics
How much is too much? I’m tired of predicting to lose. But before you point your finger, before you cast your stones, take a look at yourself. How can you expect from someone what you won’t do yourself? There’s no bottom to your reality. Your desperation is utter and complete. What you can’t love about yourself you have to steal from someone else; and what you can’t steal you have to deny. Rapid Decompression. Sometimes it feels like your whole world is coming to an end.
#10) Bamboo Bones lyics
Don’t let them break you. Don’t let them tell you who you are. Doesn’t matter where you come from, you’ll always have a floor to sleep on. And you have your bamboo bones, nervous energy, blind ambition, skin of your teeth. Push back, push back, push back, with every word and every breath. What god doesn’t give to you, you’ve got to go and get for yourself. I’m embarrassed to admit it, I’ve got no grip. I’m leading with my jaw. Can you see it from a distance? Does it look ridiculous? I guess that’s just what I have to live with. Still I have a mind to think, knees to break, you standing beside me. I’m going to push back, push back, push back, with every word and every breath. What god doesn’t give to you, you’ve got to go and get for yourself.
This is some serious generic radio rock. it’s gonna be hard to just give this album another listen. this is a band notorious for pushing their music in different directions, I’ve liked everywhere they’ve taken their music before, this is a far cry from anything they have done yet, against me fans BEWARE!!!
It’s all relative to where the band is now, musically, right? It’d be just as hard to ask for another “Reinventing Axl Rose” as it would to ask Axl Rose to put out something remotely resembling what he released in his prime. Sure, it’s radio rock, but I don’t think it’s generic radio rock.
I like this album alot more than New Wave. Obviously we’re not going to get another Reinventing Axl Rose or Eternal Cowboy. With that said, I completely agree with both of you.
I still hope people will give this a listen, I do usually like to hear what Tom Gabel has to say. and the more people who fill their heads with it the better, regardless wheather or not it’s generic radio rock or not; which I think it is, and by radio rock I mean the super produced power chord quality of the record and not the lyrical content, which I find a little juvenile in itself and by “juvenile” I don’t mean the rapper. still going to see them in ann arbor on the 22nd. I’m sure they’ll pretty much play the whole thing front to back like they do when they’re promoting a new record anyway. I’ll put on some fresh ears.
Sounds like The Killers!
I went to one of their acoustic show last week, full of clean punk kids, but great energy, great old songs, great Tom Gabel, and now I’m listening to this s**t!
What a difference!!!
Like said againstyou, the songs are probably good, but the production ….
where can i get this album…i cant get it on i-tunes
This album is polished turd if there ever was one, extremely disappointed.
Reviewer does a horrible job as well.
Also, whoever said this sounded like the Killers, please rescind your comment immediately.
Butch Vig, face it. The 90′s are over. Your time is over.
Stop ruining good bands.
Let’s face it guys, our beloved Against Me! are a pop-rock band now, soon to be the next Nickelback or Creed. It’s what they want.
At least we still have Future of the Left and Dropkick (which Rapid Decompression slightly reminds me of…)
I have loved everything these guys have done even up to New Wave, but on first listen this album just falls short of everything that is Against Me. I hate using the term “selling out” because its been used time and time again, and I understand a band has to change and evolve, but seriously you can tell this is produced by the same guy that produces current Green Day stuff. And it really fails to impress. I hope on multiple listens I change my mind… these guys deserve to get attention, but I wish they didn’t feel like they had to sound like everyone else to get it.
I wonder; did anyone listen to Toms solo album?
If you did, then you would know where this album is coming from.
Have to sid with Tim here. You would understand alot more if you heard Tom’s solo album. The lyrics are Tom and they come form Tom current state in life. You also don’t stay in the punk 18-22 forever.
I love the album, hated New Wave but love this. Though the New Wave Fargo release had some wicked songs on it.
The major let down is this didn’t include Tom’s, Bob Dylan Dream #1235 which he has been playing for a few months now at shows.
you shouldn’t have to put this album in some type of context to determine if it’s good or not. his solo album was just that, HIS SOLO ALBUM, which I enjoyed. He’s not writing harry potter novels, these albums should be able to stand on their own. you need to take this album for what it is. not very good. it’s ok. there’s nothing wrong with pop music, or pop rock bands, if it’s done well. the warmer weather makes me like it more for sure.
I’m surprised no one is mentioning the blaring absence of Warren Oak’s signature drum beats on this record. The record as a whole is good, with some catchy songs. But let’s be honest…this is not an against me record. George is a great drummer, but all the beats are so straight forward and stock. I like all of their stuff before this…yes even new wave. I just don’t get the sense that there is any real passion from these songs as in other songs. I’m not feeling the fire here.
I saw them last night in Louisville and I believe the production of the album is the problem. The songs had the same feel and were just as excellent to watch live as the old stuff. They put on a great show and their energy is something to be reckoned with. I am NEVER disappointed when I see them. Oh and I have to mention that the kids loved it. It was an all ages show . . . So . . . maybe they’ll get back to their best once they win over the majority because like those of you who don’t like this album you still go to the shows and listen to the band regardless of your feelings toward it, they might be able to put out albums like those of old and keep their albums on mainstream radio which is what we need. I would also rather hear watered down Against Me! on the radio than the trash (Nickelback, Train, etc.) that we hear now. I feel sorry for our generation if bands like Against Me! don’t find their way to the mainstream airwaves because unlike those generations that got Elvis, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Queen etc. our music will be forever defined as the light, substance devoid, trite that we hear now.
Revision: because like those of you who don’t like this album, but still go to the shows and listen to the band regardless of your feelings toward it, the new fans might have the same loyalty and Against Me! might be able to put out albums like those of old and keep their albums on mainstream radio which is what we need.
“you shouldn’t have to put this album in some type of context to determine if it’s good or not. his solo album was just that, HIS SOLO ALBUM, which I enjoyed.”
Well, you *shouldnt* have to I guess, but when you want to consider something as a work of art in the framework of someones mind, you need to consider where that mind is.
Against Me is a band, a band of musicians, led by one man: Tom. It is his vision and attitude as a front man that make the band. Without Tom there is no Against Me, there is just music.
Listen to the solo album(made after Warrens departure), then listen to this again. Without realizing why, you will understand this album a lot more.
err sorry nah…, I wasnt using your quote back against you(heh), just using it as the context for my thoughts to anyone who doesnt understand this album.
new wave was the evidence of tom’s maturation, a natural process for any song writer. the product was awesome: a strange blend of pissed lyrics, folk-punk sound, and contemporary feel. I just got through my first listen to White Crosses, and was very disappointed. It was dispassionate, sluggish, and (hopefully) forgettable. I do think the sound misses the drumming of warren oak. Huge falloff in lyrics, both the writing and the delivery. The overall sound and feel varies from annoying to boring. The order of the songs even feels wrong, no flow or progression.
With all that said Bamboo Bones is a killer song. The strange harmonies work very well here. I really dug the slide octave chord riff. Great delivery on the one line chorus. This song seems to be what they were striving toward the entire album.
I have the luck of getting to listen to this album. I have watched numerous interviews with Tom and the question of selling out has come up a bunch. He basically said he isnt trying to just make music that people will like, he is making music that he likes and its the direction that his life is going. You cant keep making the same music album after album. You can only write so many songs like that. To me, its selling out if you just make music to get famous and make people happy. I love the album. Yes, I thoroughly enjoy every album they have ever put out, but if you are a true AM! fan you will follow them. The meaning in the songs are just amazing. In an interview he wrote the song WHITE CROSSES because of the anger he has towards this church by his home that had 2000 white crosses in the yard with a sign saying that these are all the aborted babies in america every day. In my opinion, Tom is a lyrical genious.
Sounds like Green Day. Not Good Green Day either. Like, “Warning” Green Day. Exceptions: Because of the Shame wich sounds like a New Wave B-side and Rapid Decompression wich is maybe my favorite song musically on the album. I like the lyrics a lot and would most likely love an acoustic version of this album.
Beautiful to live in poverty.
Just to spite what they’re selling.
Alright, I’m going to start off by saying that I am a pretty new fan of Against Me! I’ve only been listening to them for about a month and this was the first album I listened to when my friend showed me them. That being said, I really like this album, and before anyone says something about me being a “Noob fan” or something and that I would like the new stuff let me say this: I like the old stuff a lot too especially the Acoustic & Crime As Forgiven By EPs as well as all of the album Reinventing Axl Rose. But I digress, this is about White Crosses the album…which is fantastic. The songs have a lot of meaning behind them and my favorites are White Crosses, High Pressure Low, Because Of The Shame, and Rapid Decompression.
I like the direction the band took with New Wave. What I’ve heard so far on this one suggests that they’re staying with the same sort of sound and production. Not really a bad thing for me as I am not a huge fan of those earlier albums (yes, sacrilege), though lyrically I recognize that they are interesting. They’re just too raw and unmelodic for me to listen to over and over again. Lyrically, this one still has the goods. I am tired of hearing the same cr@p over and over again from people saying they have sold out. Its the same thing that was leveled by closed minded fans against Nirvana and the Clash when they respectively released “Nevermind” and “London Calling.” Both of those albums have more than stood the test of time (not that I’m saying this album is in the same league).
Wow, I don’t know whats worse, these lyrics or this review.
remember when this band was good….when was that…..oh yea, 2002.
Whatever haters. It’s a good album.
I haven’t heard the songs yet, but I did read through the lyrics. You have to give Gabel credit where it’s due. He is a hell of a lyricist. His writing is honest and though provoking; nothing like the content of bubblegum radio rock. I can’t wait to take in the album in it’s entirety
I don’t get it what’s so wrong with making music that is catchy, with great actual meaningful lyrics, and well-produced. I play in a band and i produce music, if i want to hear “raw” music i’ll go listen to a college band play live. If i want to hear crappy over-produced radio rock i’ll listen to nickelback or my chemical romance, but c’mon this is neither. A really good album if you ask me, maybe just a little to slow but still waaaaaayyyy better than a lot of what is being marketed right now. Also the drumming is good on this album. If a song is slow you cant have the drummer all over the place, there is no such thing as a lead drummer. With that everyone can keep hating, but really what is good then? What are you listening to that is so much better than this? Lady Gaga?
When it comes to Against Me, I’m amazed at how passionately some people hate this band just because they don’t sound like they used to. Things change! People change! Yes, this is somewhat of a mainstream rock record with a similar BIG sound like Green Day or whatever, but it’s not bad music. I love it and I love all their other records. I think it’s great that they are making the music they want and are not worried about the poor babies that can’t handle a little bit of change.
I will support AM no matter what direction their music takes. This is a band that has made a huge impact on my life. TG solo albulm is great, this albulm is great, their “real” fans are great, even their haters are great. I admire their courage and miss Warren.
This is a great album. All these people crying about the fact that this band decided to grow the fuck up, are retarded!
I really love this album. I became a fan of AM sometime around 2002-03, right around all of the Fat Wreck back-lash, which I never understood. They’re a great band, and they still put out great records. ‘White Crosses’ brings the passion and soul of this band right to the foreground. Honesty is not something AM has ever lacked in the lyrical sense, but the music this time around is more straight forward and tighter than previous albums, giving it a huge sound to convey Tom’s heart-on-sleeve style of writing. Being 30 and having listened to punk music for half my life, I instantly related to ‘I Was a Teenage Anarchist’. Not that I was all that crazy about ‘anarchy’, but the impact is still there. Just enjoy the album for what it is, and you’ll have some great tunes to listen to all Summer long.
I was at a bar the other day and the were playing a lineup of awful songs: kings of leon followed up by green day then my chemical romance.
One song came on, and I yelled “what is this garbage, it’s even worse than Panic at the disco!”
My friend turned to me and said “Dude, that’s the new Against Me song.”
I thought he was bs-ing me. The band totally lost their unique voice and style. They sound.. derivative, generic and overproduced. It’s sad that to get radio play they had to give up what made them a great band in the first place.
Obviously, anybody getting angry about a band “selling out” and losing their old sound has never been in a band before! You guys listen to these songs no where near as much as the artists play them at shows and rehersals day after day, show after show. Bands are made up of real people just like yous and trust me they get bored of the same shit rehashed. So they do the most sane thing concievable and mix it up a bit and evolve! I hate to break it to you but the artists are not making this music cause you tell them to, nor do they play what you tell them to play. They make the music that they want to hear and fuck y’all if you don’t like it, or at least the real artists of the world do. Thats what rock n’ roll was all about in a nut shell, so somebody please explain to me how these guys sold out. Shit I wish more bands as Awesome and passionate as AM were flooding the radio waves, then maybe I’d listen to the fuckin radio more often! I think Against Me is on to something, if anybody listened to New Wave at all, take the fuckin music back, be the bands we want to hear, you don’t like the music then do something about it! Bunch O’ winy, bitter, snobs is all I gots to say, which seems to be the definition of our generation thus far, thats what pisses me off! Anyway, I love this album.
I’m not saying they sold out, that’s a tired meaningless fight for insecure teeny boppers to wage.
I’m saying the music on this album isn’t good. I heard my favorite band’s new song at a bar,and complained about how bad the song was w/o even recognizing it was AM!
I’m all for bands evolving. The best bands are the one’s that are willing to experiment with different styles and progress their sound. Gabel did a great job with his solo album. It was great hearing him sing over an electronic beat on the song “Random Hearts.”
But White Crosses isn’t a strong record. There is no experimentation. The album is generic, passionless and derivative. I’ve heard these songs already from 20 different bands.
Now, I love this band. Enjoyed New Wave and ..Clarity albums. I have only heard “Teenange anarchist” on satellite radio, have not heard the entire album. But I am a musician in the genre, and WHOEVER SAID IT SOUNDS LIKE THE KILLERS IS 100% CORRECT! This was the first impression I heard and my gut feeling of the song. Tom is not even screaming, he is trying to sing. Even if the lyrics are good, the song is subdued. Totally different sound. I will probably not buy this record.
White Crosses is so overproduced it loses all its potential heart in the clash of technological meddling. It’s like listening to nails on a chalkboard, so it’s hard to evaluate the songs objectively. Before it gave me an aneurysm, I was able to tell that the lyrics I could hear above the fray were up to par with what I expect from Tom Gabel, and that they were the only redeeming part of the album. The fact that I couldn’t make out half of the lyrics in the chorus of almost every song instantly severed any fledgling emotional connection I was making with a given song. Not every song has to have an anthemic, power rock chorus, and even anthems have to be intelligible. The immense layering of guitar, cymbals and vocal harmonies was done so tactlessly that I’m pretty sure that the choruses of each song would work interchangably, as they add no emotional texture or power (ironically) to ANY song. I can’t yet tell whether this is because the songs are musically boring or the production got way out of hand, but I’m pretty sure it’s both. I’ve listened to this album three times through, and the only melodies that stand out are from the first two songs, and that’s only because those were the first two I heard. The musical composition is supremely uninspired; I can’t think of a single guitar hook. Droning. Boring.
Forgettable. Sad.
These guys are getting old and need to build their nest egg. Generic rock is still rock but it appeals to a wider demographic/audience = more cash. A few catchy riffs and lyrical hooks well blended together never did any harm and are always worth a listen or two. Heck, I never liked Bon jovi until i got in my 30s befause i believed commecial rock was bad for the soul; it’s not . This stuff is awesome and I agree with the previous post that it does sound a bit like the Killers; without the Yamaha DX-7 sounds (keyboard). I would put this album as a definite buy. Teenage Anarchist probably one of the best songs i’ve heard since MCRs Black Parade.
Something many people will never understand is that it is extremely difficult for a band to put out the same album over and over again, and it goes against the nature of progression to do that. Would you all be happy if White Crosses sounded just like “reinventing” or “cowboy”? Maybe. But it wouldn’t be real. I see nothing wrong with good production. It makes it easier for “old timers” like me to listen to. ANd it certainly doesn’t ruin anything. If you like the old albums, you can always listen to them, they’ll never change. But you won’t stay 22 forever, so when you grow up, you’ll appreciate the fact that your favorite bands did too.
Half of their last album and all of their White Crosses album is over-produced and seriously lacking that edgy, gritty side that made them unique. I can’t listen to this new album again. It just doesn’t sound like Against Me. Perhaps it was the angst the band had with their previous record label that supplied the deeper creativity and now that is gone. Their new sound is no different than a lot of other acts: Unwritten Law, All American Rejects. It just feel much less original than it used to. Maybe it has something to do with losing Warren. Either way, I’m just not in to this one.