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Chicago-based hardcore quartet Rise Against released their debut album 'The Unraveling' just a couple of years ago ' an album packed to the brim with energetic, hard-hitting melodicore. Even if 'The Unraveling' didn't really break any new ground, it was warmly embraced by most. So, now it's time to release a follow-up to a thoroughly excellent album ' and it's not always easy to live up to expectations.
But Rise Against does just that ' and so much more! 'Revolutions Per Minute' is about as good as it gets, and a more than worthy successor. I had (and I assume some of you have too) heard a couple of songs before, like the brilliant 'Generation Lost' from the Fat Wreck Chords sampler 'Uncontrollable Fatulence' and the mp3 [url]www.fatwreck.com[/url] released as a teaser, called 'Heaven Knows'. I immediately thought 'this is as good as it gets', and 'okay, so now they've released the best tracks already'', but I was in for a surprise! I didn't have to wait longer than until the first track of the album, 'Black Masks and Gasoline', to realize that the best was yet to come.
The first thing that struck me, once I had listened through the album from start to finish, was that this was more influenced by punk rock than 'The Unraveling' had been, and that's nothing but positive for me. The second thing I thought about was the lyrics, and the fact that even though the album has the word 'revolution' in the title, only a few songs are outright political ' the aforementioned 'Black Masks and Gasoline', 'Blood-Red, White and Blue' and to some extent 'Broken English'.
And that's really the only negative thing I can say about this album. Beside the lyrics, the album as a whole feels very thought-through, especially melody-wise ' and tracks that stand out in the category include "Like the Angel", "Torches", "Amber Changes" and (again) 'Black Masks and Gasoline'. At least that's how I feel.
I realize I might've scared some of the hardcore heads with all this talk about 'punk rock' and 'melody', but Rise Against disappoints no one. They provide us with a few hardcore anthems, like 'Dead Ringer' and 'To the Core', both veritable freight-trains of speed and energy, accompanied flawlessly by vocalist Tim McIlraths hoarse screams. By the way, that's probably what really makes Rise Against stand out from other melodic hardcore bands ' Tim is an awesome singer, who seamlessly mixes furious screaming and harmonizing, melodic vocals with a precision few possess.
All in all, I'd give this record a 4.5 out of 5, held back only by the lack of really political lyrics, and maybe because they added a too few guitar riffs. But maybe it's just that I'm spoiled from listening to Lagwagon's 'Trashed' a few times too many...
/Fat Pete
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I think this is a great CD. My highlights are Like an Angel and Halfway There. Go and see them live they are fantastic
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Great review. Thanks for not doing a track-by-track. You covered a lot of ground, nice job.
Man, I really love this band, but I haven't listened to them in so long. I think I'm going to go bust out this CD now.
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I've never been able to find a good price in the stores for this album... So I think I'm just going to download it.
*Opens K++*
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its a pretty good cd. i like heaven knows, like the angel, and blood red white and blue
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This is a really good CD. Their singer is very talented. My favorite songs are Like The Angel (from Tony Hawk Underground btw) and Heaven Knows.
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hmm, its funny, i'v never really consider Rise Against hardcore, to me its much like a lot of punk bands only harder and more passionate sounding, I consider hardcore stuff like 'atreyu', 'stronger than hate' or 'raised fist'. ...... but enough of this monir technicalities (i didnt mean to sound like a dickhead)
Rise Against rock, i love this album, and I am praying that they will come to Aus some time and see us (and tour PERTH), btw, they have a new album comming out soon on Dreamworks... GULP, could this be the selling out of R.A???, I hope not!
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Good review but I still don't see how Rise Against gets "core" in there genre.
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I downloaded a bunch of songs... :thumb:
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[QUOTE=cbmartinez24]Good review but I still don't see how Rise Against gets "core" in there genre.[/QUOTE]
i can sort of see what you mean but go check out their new song and then you won't be saying it anymore. i just hope the rest of the cd sounds like it.
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Rise Against - Revolutions Per Minute [Fat Wreck Chords, 2002]
Band:
Tim McIlrath - Vocals and Guitar
Joe Principe - Bass and Backing Vocals
Todd Mohney - Guitar and Backing Vocals
Brandon Barnes - Drums and Backing Vocals
Tracklist:
1. Black Masks & Gasoline (2:59)
2. Heaven Knows (3:23)
3. Dead Ringer (1:31)
4. Halfway There (3:41)
5. Like the Angel (2:46)
6. Voices Off Camera (2:17)
7. Blood-Red, White and Blue (3:39)
8. Broken English (3:25)
9. Last Chance Blueprint (2:14)
10. To the Core (1:33)
11. Torches (3:41)
12. Amber Changing (3:38) [with silence]
13. Any Way You Want it [Journey Cover, Bonus Track] (2:57)
Background (taken from Riseagainst.com):
Rise Against was started late 1999 by Tim McIlrath and Joe Principe in Chicago. They added drummer Brandon Barnes, then got a dude named Mr. Precision on guitar. They released their first record, "The Unraveling" in 2001, then came back with this record in 2002.
Black Masks & Gasoline:
I like this song. I like the axework, especially the bass. I love his tone. I also like Tim's lyrics. They seem to be talking about the current state of America, about all the crimes we've committed (I guess). Tim's voice has to be one of the greatest voices in punk. It's equally melodic and raw, not to mention he can throw out a good scream once in a while. It fits perfectly with the music. 8/10.
Heaven Knows:
This is the single. I first heard this on the second Atticus comp, which got me to buy this CD. This is a good song, on the same tier as "Black Masks and Gasoline". I especially like the bass slide in the second verse, which adds some more tension to the song. I also like the bridge, which slows it down a bit. The climbing guitar riff in the second half is pretty awesome, too. 8/10.
Dead Ringer:
I really like songs like this. Pounding, fast hardcore with yelling vocals and chugging guitar and pissed-off, take-no-crap lyrics. I'd never really exposed myself to hardcore until I bought this CD, and this song was one of the reasons why I looked into it more. I like how the verse riff kind of follows the vocals, and the guitar tailoff at the end of the chorus is pretty cool, too. I like the note choice by the guitars in the bridge; it brings some tension to the song. 8.5/10.
Halfway There:
I love the second half of the intro. It rules. It makes me want to jump and mosh and stuff. I also like how it tones down for the verse a teeny bit so Tim's lyrics actually sound like they're confused and lost. His lyrics seem to be talking about getting fed up with all the crap that's going on around you and finally asking questions, finally doing something. This song gets another 8/10.
Like the Angel:
Right from the getgo, this song was my favorite song on the album. That has changed, but (obviously), this song has not. It's a great, midtempo love song. It's not overdone and sappy like a lot of love songs I've heard recently, yet still remains sweet. Tim's voice seems a little too "big" for a love song, but it works well here. The riffs are good too, especially the solo in the bridge. I like the basswork, especially in the chorus. In a song like this, I would've expected the bass to stick to the roots; but Joe does a marvelous job here. This is one of the best songs on the album: 9/10.
Voices Off Camera:
This is a good song. There's not really much to say about it, because it's regular Rise Against, which means its good. I'd like to point out the second half bridge riff, however: I like that riff a lot. It is super fun to play, and it fits perfectly with the song. This is also where I wondered if Tim had any vocal training, which I suspect he did to hold his wind for the entire chorus. 7.5/10.
Blood-Red, White and Blue:
The crown jewel of this album. This is the best Rise Against song I've ever heard. From the pounding intro to the super sexy solo (reminiscent of Propagandhi, in my opinion) in the outro, this song is gold. It's fast, and features a simple yet perfect drumbeat from Brandon. Tim is really spewing vitirol on this song, as he screams lyrics such as "Would God bless a murder of the innocents? / Would God bless a war based on pride? / Would God bless a money-hungry government? / No." Ouch. Though you might not like it as much if you are against the politics of this song, everyone can agree it is one helluva performance by the band. If you hadn't guessed, this is my favorite song on the album. 10/10.
Broken English:
This is a great song, too. Very fun to play, especially the chorus. I also like the lead in the intro; it fits very well. Tim's lyrics basically speak of the world having fallen down, and everyone waiting for someone to come and lift them out of their misery. Then Tim comes in and says that we have to do this ourselves, we can't wait for someone else. Very inspirational. 8.5/10.
Last Chance Blueprint:
This is one of my favorite songs to play off of this album. It's super fast, super aggressive, and I like the sound bites, though I don't know what the first one would have anything to do with anything. The lyrics are surprisingly typical in subject matter: Tim's sick of this place and he's going to leave. However, the details in the lyrics definitely set it apart. I love the simple, hard chorus; it just rules. 8.75/10.
To the Core:
Another hardcore song in the vein of "Dead Ringer". This is just as good. More angry vocals, more sexy riffs: What else could you ask for? This is an awesome song, I give it an 8.5/10.
Torches:
Gotta love that intro. It's just great. One of the best on the album. Then how it dissipates to the verse, then shoots right back up for the chorus riff (which is genius, in my opinion) really adds to the song. I also like how it doesn't go back to quiet for the verse, but keeps the speed and loudness. The lyrics are about hope; about seeing how darkness has purged every nook and cranny of the world, yet still seeing one or two specks of light; one or two "torches". Tim's performance is consistent with every other song on the album. I love how the guitar climbs at the end of the song, too. 8/10.
Amber Changing:
Another love song, and the (supposed) closer. The lyrics are like "Like the Angel" in that they aren't overly sappy; in fact, I don't think they are sappy one bit. However, the chorus is full of love; lyrics like "No place that I'd rather be than right here, right now" kind of give that away. This is a bombshell of a song. 9/10.
Any Way You Want it:
So Rise Against decided to do a Journey cover. It was a good idea, because their rendition, though there are no real differences I can think of, is great. I would've thought Tim's voice wasn't melodic enough for this song, but lo and behold: it works extremely well. The riffs are genius and hooky, even though the band didn't write them (which you can tell, because the "single" wasn't all that hooky). The one flaw with this song is the last chorus. It goes on for too long. Simple as that. Though the guitar lead keeps it from getting too boring, I thought that it just went on too long. But, even so, 8.5/10.
Summary:
One of the best bands in punk these days. The lyrics have a general subject matter of hope, independence, and thinking for yourself and finding out the truth. Tim is an amazing vocalist, and I wish I could sound like him. I doubt they'll top this album. I give this album a final score of 5/5.
| | | Album Rating: 5.0
hobolicious, why did you just post your review on someone elses review? that seems a bit trashy to me. Your review is good, but you dont have to go and put it below another one. as for you, fatpete, great review, but i dont find any problems at all with this album
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
I used to be obsessed with this album when it came out. For that, it get's a 4.
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well done review, u covered the cd very well without doing a t-b-t
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
Such a good and under-appreciated album. I still enjoy RA from time to time.
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