Band: The Bouncing Souls
Album: Anchors Aweigh (2003)
"The Pete" Steinkopf - Guitar, Vocals
Bryan "Papillon Keinlein - Bass, Vocals
Greg Attonio - Vocals
Michael McDermott - Drums
The Bouncing Souls have been rocking for a long time (the earliest listed date on the discography is '93, and there are many albums before that without dates), and have been long time favorites of the Warped Tour. Their music has always been personal, and as time goes on, one can clearly listen to their growth, as musicians and as people. If you look at the lyrics, you know they have their priorities straight, and that makes their music something more than just some catchy rock about living and loving. They say that rock has saved their souls, and their fans can't help but agree.
Anchors Aweigh is a full embrace of the maturity that was hinted at in their earlier album "How I Spent My Summer Vacation." The album is deeper, harder, softer, and more intimate than their earlier releases. The sound is distinctive, yet still Bouncing Souls. The bass' and guitar's powerful rhythms (The Pete admits his biggest influence is U2, and Papillon's style is the same), Greg's unique yell, and Michael's drumming all fit together almost perfectly.
There's a few songs that really stand out on this album:
Kids And Heroes - This is a song about sellouts and moving past them. The music is powerful, and the lyrics say what we want to say better than we ever could.
Anchors Aweigh - While a bit repettitive, this song has "farewell for now" nailed. The entire tone of the song is both sad, nostalgic, and expectant.
I'm From There/The Fall Song - Beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. I'm From There is about two brothers finally making peace, while The Fall Song is what marks the album as a departure point. The songs are very reminiscent of "Gone" from How I Spent My Summer Vacation.
There are a few songs which are sub-par, too. Todd's Song, which was dedicated to a friend who committed suicide, is repetitive, short, and simple, and The Day I Turned My Back On You is a rather annoying song about dumping a girlfriend for a stupid reason.
The cd includes a music video of "Kids + Heroes" and a "making of" for the album. There's also a promotional trailer for their biography DVD.
4.25/5
