Motion City Soundtrack, from Minneapolis, Minnesota, is made up of:
Justin Pierre – Lead vocals, guitar
Joshua Cain – Guitar, backing vocals
Jesse Johnson – Synthesizer, keyboard
Matthew Taylor – Bass guitar, piano, backing vocals
Tony Thaxton – Drums, percussion, backing vocals
When I put a pop punk CD into my computer and hit play, I can usually expect a few things:
1. Lots of catchy hooks.
2. Lyrics that express emotion and energy.
3. Warm, energetic vocals
With "Even if it Kills Me" you get all of those things, and you know it right from the start of the CD. "Fell In Love Without You" starts the CD off with some unusual sounds before exploding into a weirder synth and guitar intro. The song has a painfully catchy hook, but the song is over before you know it. It's Motion City Soundtrack's way of kicking you in the face and letting you know that they intend on keeping you with the CD the whole way through.
"This is for Real" is a great song that starts with just drums and bass with the vocals that builds to a great and catchy chorus. The vocals heard on this track are pretty much what you'll hear for the rest of the CD, which is good, because the vocals are great. "It Had To Be You" may not be as good as the previous song, but it is quite good with very catchy back up vocals during the chorus.
"My body aches, it heaves, it shakes/All somersaults though so called art" sings Justin on "Last Night" which may be the best on the album, it's definitely the best lyrically. It's the first real slow song on the CD, which is good, because I needed a change of pace from the first three songs.
Once you've heard this far in the CD, you've probably thought "Wow, these guitars are incredibly average.", and you'd be right in thinking that. It's too bad that guitars never really rise above what they do throughout the CD, as it's clear that both Justin and Joshua are talented musicians. The interesting and creative synth and keyboard lines really save the day musically. I first thought they were annoying and useless, but after a few listens, I couldn't imagine any of these songs without Jesse's weird sounds going on above the guitars.
The first line of "Calling all Cops" won a laugh due to it's Transformers reference, but unfortunately, that's all there really is to this average song. It's not bad, but it's in between two great songs that really drown it out. "Can't Finish What You've Started" is another good song, with a catchy chorus and pretty good lyrics.
"The Conversation" is completely piano driven, and sounds like something Jack's Mannequin would have written. Hm. Anyway, it's a good song, even if it might be a bit boring to some. "Broken Heart" follows this song, which is probably my favorite from the CD. It has a great chorus with some very good drumming, vocals harmonies, and an awesome synth line.
What follows this song is unfortunately the weaker section of the CD with nothing really rising above your standard pop punk, so I might as well talk about the last part of the band, the rhythm section. The drumming is your average pop punk fare. They do a great job of keeping the music moving, and there's some pretty creative drumming here and there, but overall, it's nothing to get excited about. The bass work is great. I loved hearing Matthew's strong bass throughout the CD, even when the rest of the band was playing. It's really nice to know that there's at least ONE band that doesn't just throw the bass to the bottom of the mix without really doing anything with it.
The next really notable song is the CD's title track and final song "Even If It Kills Me". It's a bit slow, but it picks up during the chorus with catchy and earnest vocals. It may not be the best song on the CD, but it wraps the record up quite well.
This is a very good serving of pop punk, with only the occasional weak song. I'd recommend this CD to just about everyone who likes pop, punk, or even just rock.
Recommended Tracks:
Fell In Love Without You
This Is For Real
Last Night
Broken Heart
