Oh Boland Offer Grass Walls

You should already have Western Leisure are your anticipated albums list, if you’re making one. If not, then just crank up this new Oh Boland track today, which is the opening track from the forthcoming LP. There’s something about it that reminds me of the Clean at their most rambunctious, just kind of taking their hooks and letting them rip in whatever direction they can muster. That said, there’s also a bit of Modern Lovers in the constant driving stomp that wraps around all that exuberance; I personally love the way the vocal delivery has an emphatic punch at the end of each line. Be sure to order Western Leisure from Meritorio Records before it drops on May 31st.

AAR Release 20th Anniversary Edition of Self-Titled LP

You’re likely reading this post about All-American Rejects and wondering…”how does this fit the site?” Well, we’ve all got to start somewhere, and I have no shame in saying there were a few months back in 2002 where I was fortunate enough to travel around with the band and poorly sell t-shirts. But, honestly, I was in the band’s orbit from an early age, and the fact that it’s been 20 years since they took off from Oklahoma and never looked back (except Mikey, who still calls it home) is pretty amazing. So, wanted to celebrate their achievement of rocking out for over 20 years (they’re on tour now!) by posting this rad record and its reissue treatment; it now has the rare “Cigarette Song” on 7″ packaged within the LP! Grab it HERE! And, if you buy it and look in the liner notes, maybe you’ll recognize a name hanging about.

 

FT5: Fictional Supergroups

1016top5coverAfter being underwhelmed (and I’m the only one) by Them Crooked Vultures, I began to look ahead to the Supergroups that I would create.  Sure, this is all conjecture, and some are jaded by my own personal tastes and connections.  It’s an interesting topic.  Who is your favorite musician, and who would you like to see them playing with?  Make your own supergroup, and tell me about it.  While I wait, I’ll throw out mine. And, I apologize for my lack of originality in naming bands.

Read more

FT5: Bands I Refuse To Apologize For

0619top5coverSince this is my first post, I thought I should give everyone a little bit of insight into who I am. Unlike the other ATH writers, I refuse to have “Guilty Pleasures.” Either I like a band, or I don’t. I won’t apologize or make excuses for what I listen to, and I try not to give other people a hard time for what they like (one exception would be Nathan). I’m not saying every band I like is great. Sometimes they have great musicians with bad lyrics and catchy beats. Sometimes they’re just catchy. And the best is when I hate a band, but I hear them so often that I’m tricked into liking them. That being said, here are five bands on my iPod that have play counts at or around 30, and that’s just since April.  Follow the jump for more.
Read more

All American Rejects – When the World…

Rating: ★★★½☆

The All-American Rejects have been playing their pop-punk stylings for years, perfecting their formula as best they know how. Their last effort brought mainstream hits with “Move Along” and “It Ends Tonight,” both scoring huge hits for the masses. This time around, on When the World Comes Down, the band steps a little aside from their formula, growing a bit in the process.

Of course, the band has a few hits on the way with this album, and fans wouldn’t have it any other way.  Album opener “I Wanna” is one of the stronger upbeat songs on this record, with the focus resting on Tyson Ritter’s voice just before the rest of the band joins in for the fun.  Everyone, regardless of where you stand on pop music, can appreciate the strength in the chorus, though its lyrics might be a little hollow.

Skip ahead a few tracks and you will find the first single from the album, already climbing the charts: “Gives You Hell.”  Surprisingly, this song doesn’t rest on the bands combination of solid percussion and guitar-monies, instead putting the focus crisp percussion.  This is a song that will probably stay around for months and months, in all arenas.

But, they follow all this up with “Mona Lisa,” which is a slower number than the first minutes of this album have to offer.  Acoustic guitars and Ritter’s voice are the perfect match here, creating one of the more surprising moments on the album.  It also boasts of being the song with the best set of lyrics here.

The album is filled with tunes familiar to AAR fans, although they might be a little more subdued on this effort.  You can still find really strong guitar work, regardless of what you’re into these days.  A newer touch is the usage of extemporaneous atmospherics to fill out some of the space on this album.  It shows a bit of maturity for the group.

Those of you interested in this album will surely find lots that you love here, while those who do not will leave this album be.  Nonetheless, it’s another solid performance from a group who knows exactly what they are doing, and seems to have a lot of fun doing it. Let’s have some fun with them.

[audio:https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/the_all_american_rejects_-_gives_you_hell.mp3]

Download: All American Rejects – Gives You Hell [MP3]

Social Media Auto Publish Powered By : XYZScripts.com