RPM is killer. One of my all-time favourites.

Savior is catchy as shit.

Album Rating: 3.5

Good review. One thing though, in the first paragraph, it's Long Forgotten Sons, not Songs.



I actually really like this album. Hero of War is really the only song I don't like.

His voice can be downright annoying on Hero of War. (I love how that's pretty much the only song anyone ever talks about in Appeal to Reason threads)

Album Rating: 4.0

its the most controversial one. i actually dont mind his voice on the song, just the lyrics

Album Rating: 3.0

Well, to be fair, if a band goes political/environmental, it usually tends to become overpreachy, and Rise Against is no exception. Their videos are so primitive in their messages that I would really like to forget them, but I can't.



And yeah, Hero of War's lyrics appear to be more appalling because the song focuses on them by being acoustic. But it's not all that bad compared to the others, and not only from this album. And that's a shame, because they do make some good stuff, it's just the lyrics that suck. Like Rage Against the Machine, pretty much, even the 'Against' repeats.



Just my opinion, though.

Album Rating: 3.5

I don't mind Rise Against's political lyrics usually, Hero of War is really the only one I take issue with.



You're right, Emim, let's talk about the positives! My top songs:



Savior

Collapse(Post-Amerika)

Long Forgotten Sons

Kotov Syndrome

Re-Education(Through Labor)

Audience of One

Album Rating: 3.5

I don't mind the lyrics at all, I completely disagree with them but they're expressing their opinion through music which they are entitled to. When it comes to music I throw my opinion out and just concentrate on whether it's good music or not. If it is then who cares.

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

Well, to be fair, if a band goes political/environmental,

Album Rating: 3.0

Forgot to include Re-Education (Through Labor) in the recommended tracks section

Album Rating: 3.0 | Sound Off

Yahoo says the Hero of War is about thus: (not a bad answer at all)



Interesting song.

I don't believe the song is mocking war or saying it is heroic to kill people, but I think it's saying, "These soldiers come home and we greet them with welcome and praise, but look at what they have truly done."

I think that statement fits well for the meaning of the song.

"They took off his clothes

They pissed in his hands

I told them to stop

But then I joined in " - that is a lyric of a soldier confessing what he has done in war. And then the song goes on to say...

"A hero of war

Yeah that’s what I’ll be

And when I come home

They’ll be damn proud of me" - so I think the boy is saying the soldiers that did that are looked at as heroes when they come home, and I think that this is eye-opening for the boy to see what is really going on during war. I think he's thinking "These people whom I saw as heroes of war, this is what they do. And I want to be a hero of war too."





"She walked through bullets and haze

I asked her to stop

I begged her to stay

But she pressed on

So I lifted my gun

And I fired away" - The soldier wants what he wants. Is this good what he did? Was it RIGHT? No. That's what Rise Against is trying to unveil to others, I believe, through this song. That they are our soldiers but the praise is undeserving when you see the actions they have taken and the wrong things they have done.

Album Rating: 3.0 | Sound Off

"A hero of war

Is that what they see

Just medals and scars

So damn proud of me" - The soldier is saying, all it takes is to have some medals and scars to have people be proud of you, but they don't know where the scars have come from. All the people in America know is that you went to war and you come home with a medal and a scar and then you're greeted with songs of worship, but the line, "A hero of war, is that what they see?" is almost confessing the fact that he is not a hero because he is asking if that's what they see (implying that he sure doesn't see it because he knows he's not really a hero) Then the line is "Just medals and scars....so proud of me." I think that whole verse is saying, "I'm not a hero of war but that is what you see because I come home with a medal. And that's the only reason you're proud."



Then in the beginning and in the end when the man says, "Son, have you seen the world? Well what would you say, if I said that you could? Just carry this gun and you’ll even get paid.” - this line implies that by giving him the gun, the boy is now going off to be a soldier to witness what the soldiers REALLY do while in war (hence the, "see the world" part).



That is my OWN interpretation that I got from reading the lyrics. I hope my thoughts are clear to you (I'm not too good on conveying my thoughts to someone in words)

For just in case they aren't, I'll say it once more...the song, from what I see, is saying that we are proud of our soldiers because we SEE a medal but we didn't see what they really did while in war, which were not the nicest things. And all it took was for them to grab a gun and leave, and then when they come back we treat them as heroes without ever knowing what truly went on.

lots of words

Album Rating: 3.5

That was a good answer. Pos.



I listened to this again today after reading this, still a solid album.

Album Rating: 3.0

I only enjoyed half of this album's tracks. A bit meh :/

Album Rating: 3.5

I was like that at first too. This album has grown on me so much though, started off around a 2.5 for me.

Album Rating: 3.5

i liked the review, pos and i agree with your take on Hero of War. I feel that this has become the topic of conversation on here so figured I would chime in as well. In my humble opinion I see this song as a protest song, from the soldier's point of view, which, regardless of whether or not the band has any real experience, is refreshing. The song is teeming with irony and it is a subtle critique of the media, which is where the band gets the basis for many images brought up in the song. The song tells about how these young men and women are manipulated and exploited by the government and then it talks about what kinds of behaviors they are pressured into during times of immense stress and fear and then in turn they become demonized by many people who can't understand that these men and women are under extreme duress and they are put into vulnerable positons. It shows how many of these soldiers experience horrible traumas and feelings of regret, that nobody can understand unless they were there, yet people welcome them back with open arms and shouts of praise which fall of deaf on ears because these poor young men and women are now scarred for life because of the horrors of war. This is similar, though a bit different, to the sentiments during Vietnam, these soldiers are told over and over again by their government that they are patriots and heroes and then they go into combat and see how horrible it all really is and they begin to question the power structure that sent them into combat and they start to lose faith in what they are doing. so, i think i've rambled on for long enough haha but what i'm trying to say is that i don't think think this song is anti-american or anti-soldier at all, i think this song is on the side of the soldier and the common american who is exploited and lied to by the government.