Rockin Releases So Far

Ok, so I've gotten some of the bands on my this year's going to rock list. I have This Providence, The Decemberists, New Found Glory, and A Day to Remember's releases. Below I will evaluate their awesomeness in order of which ones I like best.

1.The Decemberists-The Hazards of Love

The first time I listened to this I was nonplussed by it. I've been a Decemberists fan for about 4 years now and this seemed a disappointing release with a few good moments here and there. I decided to give it another listen because I thought I'd warm up to it. And boy did I. The songs are like puzzle pieces in the winding story that unfolds. While some pieces may be beautiful all on their own, It is best seen when they all slide aimlessly together forming a masterpiece. Following the harder rock trend of The Crane Wife album The Hazards of Love comes across as a Folk/Metal/Rock Opera mash up that is amazingly not as awkward as it sounds. It's my first 'gotta have on vinyl release of 2009. (I hope they release it on vinyl! *crosses fingers*

2.A Day to Remember-Homesick

I can't believe I thought that this band was screamo back when they released For Those Who Have Heart. Honestly on this release I'm now leaning towards pop punk, but it's hard to call it that with such a thundering bass and the bite of McKinnon's throaty growl. It certainly has pop punk sensibility though, complete with hand claps, group vocals, and massive hooks. On the other end of the spectrum it hits pretty hard and there are some pretty fricken sweet breakdowns included. I was sold from the first group vocals that opened the first track mimicking the heavy guitars that follow immediately after a cry of "Let's Go!". I knew right there I was going to like this album a helluva lot. And it's in no way a letdown even in it's (cringe!) ballads.

3.New Found Glory-Not Without a Fight

All pop punk bands better stop slouching and bring their A-Game, because New Found Glory (the self-proclaimed Kings of Pop Punk) have returned to the scene. They're not breaking into dance music or wearing neon either, and Pundik isn't relying on Auto Tune to make his lyrics stick. This is an NFG album. If you have ever liked them in the past, you're going to like this album. If that's all you needed to hear than feel free to stop reading. So the last album released (Coming Home) was softer to say the least than it's predecessors. It was still an amazing release and rivals for one of my favorite albums by NFG. If you thought they'd grown out of their genre and were post-pop punk, this album was their memo to you that you were dead wrong. They bring all of their talent to the table releasing some of their catchiest music yet. Don't Let Her Pull You Down is an anthem and a half, while Truck Stop Blues had me singing the chorus the second time I heard it. The only fault of the record is it is too much the same. All the NFG tactics are there, but they don't stray away from the formula much. It's ends up being a great album, just not the most memorable in their already stacked catalogue.

This Providence-Who Are You Now?

I'll start this one off negatively, just for kicks. Why would you ever redo My Beautiful Rescue? It was perfect the way it was. It didn't need to be transformed into some dance pop song. Alright, griping over. This album is definitely worth a listen, especially if you've never heard this band before. While nothing is as snarky as A Wolf In Sheep's Clothing was on their self titled release, it certainly does have it's glory filled moments. My favorite of which is That Girl's A Trick. I can't get enough of this song and it's the first one I go to if I want to be selective. The album seems to have a different feel than the last. I don't know where the Christian undertones went (maybe I'm just not reading enough into the lyrics), and they've gone more for a pop/rock approach rather than their Fueled By Ramen emo style. It sounds a lot like Santi era The Academy Is... did. Which isn't bad to say the least, but I was hoping for a step up from their self titled rather than a step sideways.