everyonelistens

Cross posted to MySpace.

I'm going to begin this review by divulging a secret: I was not a huge fan of Paramore's first CD. Yes I am a fan of sugary pop-punk, yes I am a sucker for a charismatic female lead singer, but when I first heard All We Know Is Falling, I was not extremely impressed. The talent potential was definitely there: the singing, musicianship, and songs were all good, but nothing really popped. The two singles the album spawned were definitely the strongest tracks on the album, and beyond that, there wasn't really much deviation from the decent-pop-punk-record formula. Was it a good record? Yes. Was it a great record? Not at all.

About a year ago, however, I saw them live for the first time. Their stage presence was great, the way Hayley interacted with the crowd was nothing short of pro, and the playing was superb. The crowd ate it up. I found myself a little less skeptical, and ever so slowly, my opinion on the band began to change. I revisited their record shortly thereafter, but this time I approached it from a different angle. I took into account that All We Know... was the product of a bunch of green kids making their first foray into a business that chews up and spits out bands almost daily. In the year following the record's was release, they had seasoned and their new-found confidence was undeniable.

Fast forward to, June 12th 2007, the day that their sophomore effort, Riot!, was released. As soon as my lunch break began, I bee-lined it to the nearest record store to procure myself a copy. Upon my return to work, I began to listen, and was hooked. The difference between the two albums was noticeable immediately. (Think of the the time you visited a friend from high school you hadn't seen in years, and his little sister walked into the room, smoking hot. She was most certainly not the scrawny little 13 year old you remembered...) The thing that struck me immediately was the caliber of Hayley Williams' vocal performance. Her voice is so much stronger and resolute than on the previous effort. Granted, she's not taking any Christina-esque risks vocally, but it's definitely a squarely solid effort. This was echoed by Hayley herself in an absolutepunk.net interview at Bamboozle, where she stated that this record showed "a lot more confidence, [both] as a band and personally." And it shows. The evolution of the band's sound from All We Know... to Riot!  can be likened to the growth Fall Out Boy sustained between Take This To Your Grave and From Under The Cork Tree. I think this record, while solid, is a stepping stone for Paramore. The band contends that this is "the record they want to be remembered for." I honestly believe that their coup de grace is yet to come.

The record starts off with a stunner: "For A Pessimist, I'm Pretty Optimistic." The feel of this song is actually very similar to "Thriller" from Infinity On High (less the Jay-Z intro, obviously) and the momentum carries through "That's What You Get," and straight in to the third track, "Hallelujah." (Wow, I'm just now noting all the FOB parallels. Strange for a band on Fueled By Ramen...) This is one of my favorite tracks on the record. It really puts a spotlight on Hayley's vocal abilities by showcasing her range a bit here. The next track, "Misery Business," is the single, and with good cause. It's clearly the strongest track, (probably seconded by "We Live For This," the album's closer).

For the most part, the pacing of the record is good, but it does hiccup a bit after "Misery Business." The two weakest songs on the record, "When It Rains" and "Let The Flames Begin," are placed back-to-back, and it definitely trips the flow of listenability. The songs are good, but their placement is questionable. After that come "Miracle" and "Crushcrushcrush," both of which have highly-addictive hooks. "Miracle" is a pretty straight-up pop song, while "Crush..." reflects an retro 80's New Wave vibe. 

The last three songs on the record are sequenced wonderfully. The ninth track, "We Are Broken" is a pretty, piano-laden pop ballad, and it is contrasted immediately upon completion by the two-step stylings of "Fences." The album's final track, "We Live For This," will probably be the second single. It's a driving little number accented by gang vocals and a very recognizable pre-chorus culled directly from Refused's "Liberation Frequency." It's sure to be a crowd favorite during live performances.

Paramore isn't breaking any musical ground with Riot!, but in this year of the pop-rock record (such as Fall Out Boy's Infinity On High, and the forthcoming releases from Cartel and Motion City Soundtrack) it's going to be one of the standouts. The lyrical content is simple and catchy, the hooks are great, and the musicanship is solid - basically, it's everything a good pop-punk album should be. It will be the record that secures Paramore's place as one of the principal players in the punk rock scene. The best is yet to come from these young Tennesseans, and I think, as Hayley sings in "Hallelujah": somehow, everything is going to fall in to place.


And thank you again, Erica, for your help with this.

Here are the following reasons why my birthday week (July 20-July 27) is going to rule:

1. On Sunday, July 22nd, my singer Tim and I are having a co-birthday party. Cute, I know. But it's not just any old co-birthday party. It's going to be at Jerky's in Providence. We've got the night booked, we've got the sound system, we've got over 150 people on the invite list, and we've got an epic line-up of guest DJ's (including Steve Are I spinning a sweet set of 80's rock and roll; TCW bassist Jeff Langmaid, who will be throwing down some of the finest mid-90's-early-00's punk; yours truly, who will be playing whatever I feel like because it's MAH BIRTHDAY; and the lovely and talented Erica Are I, who's set is sure to fill the dance floor) and we're working on getting a drink sponsor for some free cocktails, but we'll see how that goes (but if anyone knows anyone in RI, plz advise). So yeah, should be sick times. Everyone is invited. More details to come. Stoked.com.
2. On Tuesday, July 24th, Motion City Soundtrack is playing at Axis in Boston. My tickets came last Thursday. Sup awesome. Also appearing are The Higher and one of my current "it" bands, Sherwood.
   
3. Also on Tuesday, Cartel will release their much anticipated and completely bubble-laced new self-titled record.
   
4. ALSO on Tuesday, July 24th, I will turn 27 years old. That's mah birthday proper. Plz send presents and well-wishes.
   

Plus, it's my birthday week, so the rest of the dates shall be filled with revelry and alcohol consumption. I also might take a trip to the Foxwoods for a night, so I'll be lookin' for a posse to round up for that...

Yeah. My birthday has sucked every year since I was like 22. (Last year was pretty good, though. Sup, Six Flags?) This year should prove to be scrumtrulescent. Word.

In light of the upcoming Glassjaw reunion, I thought it would be a cool idea to write about the some bands I would like to see reunite, if only for a single show. (OK, so Glassjaw never really broke up persay, but you know what I mean.) Now, this originally started out as a top 5 list, but I included a no-brainer sixth, as there were bands I just could not leave off. Also, as a rule, the band had to form post-1990, otherwise my list would be peppered with bands like The Clash, Minor Threat, Circle Jerks, Operation Ivy, etc. So we're keeping it simple here. So, without further hesitation...

1. Blink 182. This is obviously a no-brainer. From the first time I heard the opening riff to "Dammit" over ten years ago, I knew that this band and I would have a torrid love affair for years to come. Dude Ranch remains in my top 10 albums of all time (which you may recall from this journal entry from a few weeks ago), and I celebrated each subsequent record immensely. I was extremely disappointed when the announced their "indefinite hiatus" in 2005, and as more and more details surfaced regarding the hiatus in the following months, the more and more it looked like this break was in fact a break-up. Oh well, it's as Mark sang in "Apple Shampoo": the start was something good, but some good things must end.
2. Refused. Let's get one thing straight. This band was revolutionary. This band broke up because they made a record so good that they could never top it. This band that preached about the evils of capitalism and fascism poetically ended mid-set when police stormed the basement show they were playing. The Shape Of Punk To Come was a fucking masterpiece, the likes of which will never be seen again in terms of impact on a genre and revolutionary record making. And their dissoultion solidified their legend
3. Jawbreaker. Jawbreaker broke up just as I was beginning to get into punk rock. I never really had heard much about them, except for Screeching Weasel name-dropping them in "Suzanne Is Getting Married." But, a few years ago, I came across a used copy of Dear You, so I purchased it. It was some of the best $8.99 I've ever spent, and after listing to it, as well as the previous three records, I came to realize just how important this band was to the music I loved. The scathing, biting lyrics paved the way for the sharped-tongue words issued forth by Chris Conley, (in fact, the album title Through Being Cool is lifted straight from a Jawbreaker song ) and their Kerouac-refrencing made it cool for punk rockers to be smart and well read, not just snotty skateboarders.
4. Face To Face. This band is perhaps the most underappreciated group in punk rock history. Through twelve years and six incredible albums (seven, if you include the tribute record, Standards and Practices), this band just never got it's due. I saw them twice, and each time they just blew me away. Unfortunately, I was one of the few. It's funny because just about every band out there will attest to the things that Face To Face gave to the scene, but the fans never quite got it. In fact, they wrote a song about how futile and unforgiving the music industry can be on their final record. Still, they are one of my biggest influences, and they gavew so much more to music than they ever got in return.
5. Mighty Mighty Bosstones. What can you say about these guys? Going to Bosstones shows were some of the best times of my life. These guys would play upwards of 15 songs a night, and when they were done, they would ask the crowd what they wanted to hear. I'll always remember the time that Dicky bellowed "What do you want to hear?!?" as he had so many times before, and 19-year old me, front and center, screaming "Holy Smoke!" with a few of my friends, only to have Dicky reply "You want 'Holy Smoke'?" followed by the crowd going apeshit and the Bosstones launching into it. Those were the sweatiest, smokiest, drunkest shows I've ever been to, and what I wouldn't give to see them play just one more time...

And for the reasons displayed in the video below, the 6th slot goes to At The Drive-In. No further explanation is necessary.

So this is inconsequential to 99.9% of people who even bother to read this, BUT Rhode Island's DEM has decided to, as of next season, allow reservations at its state campgrounds. Now, I am huge into camping at RI parks, mostly because the fee is a scant $14 a night (compared to private camping facilities which charge upwards of $22-$30 per night), so for the camper on a budget, it's very easy on the walletz. Also, while camping is a getaway, I'm still close enough to home to not have to take days off work (KEY when you haven't accrued any vacation time at your present job).

Currently, reservations are not accepted and any Rhode Island park except Fisherman's Memorial Park in Narragansett (and with good cause - it's fucking beautiful and it's a short walk from Scarborough State Beach), but in order to reserva a site there, one must engage in a tedious and archaic first-come-first serve snail mail application process. Boo @ that. Every other park is simply first come, first serve. Normally, that's fine, but I have run into situations where I've taken time off work, called to see if there are available sites, and had the person at the other end be all "well, we have a few but we anticipate we'll be booked solid for the entire weekend, so I would get here as early as possible." Except less articulate and with a thicker Rhode Island accent. (Sidenote: you have to be borderline retarded to work at a DEM campground for the summer. Or so it seems.)

So needless to say, I usually end up with some crappy site in the sticks far, far away from the boat ramp. (Note: I am gay for canoeing. Like, it owns me. I know all the proper strokes and techniques and it bothers me when people can't canoe in a straight line...just one of those things).
But no more! Now I can reserve that site in the Fisherman's Camp at Burlingame and not have to worry about how I'm going to portage my canoe a mile and a half. So I'm psyched.

Again, most of you don't care. But if anyone feels like sneaking some booze into a state park and playing card games via citronella candle light this summer, please inquire within.

So the long weekend is over. I'm slowly recovering - my synapses are finally firing just as steadily as they should be, and I'm pretty sure most of the alcohol is out of my bloodstream. Bummer, I know, but with a bachelor party on Thursday and a wedding to attend on Saturday, that situation should rectify itself rather quickly. Regardless, some cool stuff has been going on, so here are your links:

• Anyone who read my All Time Desert Island Top 5 journal last week knows that I am absolutely enamored with The Clash. Well, there is a documentary out there that debuted at the Sundance Film Festival this year about the life of the band's prolific front man, the one and only Joe Strummer. It's entitled The Future Is Unwritten. The film documents Stummer's entire life, from his nomadic beginnings living as the son of a diplomat to the glory years with The Clash to his time with The Mescaleros and finally, his untimely death and unrivaled legacy. He is truly one of the most influential figures in modern music. The film was released in the UK on May 18th, so look for it coming to our parts shortly. Here is the official website.
  
• Our favorite bubble band, Cartel, has videos performing four new tracks up on YouTube. Yuo can check them out here, here, here, and here.
• The third song from theMySpace Smashing Pumpkins tribute is now up for the listening pleasure of the public. Head on over to +44's MySpace page to check out their version of "I Am One," which is hands down my favorite song off Gish.
  
• As we all know, the music industry is in turmoil. Record sales are down, bands are no longer being signed to multi-kabillion dollar contracts, and the advent of something the kids like to call the "interwebs" has led to a stratospheric increase in file sharing. Artists can no longer rely on  physical record sales to sustain themselves, and labels hell-bent on plodding along like they always have will find themselves in financial shambles if they don't change their ways. The CD format is dying. (Note: I will be writing an upcoming journal entry on my feeling regarding the death of the CD shortly. Watch for it!) Artists such as Wilco, RX Bandits, and Saves The Day have resorted to shedding themselves free of their labels and distributing their music themselves. In fact, all three of these bands even record their own records. Unfortunately for bands that haven't had the accolades that these three artists have, it's tough to get records made, even if you are signed to a label. Smaller bands signed to independent labels still kick and scratch their way across the country in breakdown-prone vans, sleeping on floors the whole while. They pay for their own merch, they load their own equipment in and out every night, and they manage their own tours. Sometimes it's because their label just doesn't have the money for extravagant tour support. Other times it's because the label has other, larger bands it needs to focus on, and therefore, incubating these newer bands is an afterthought. All that being said, here are three different insights into the woes of the industry:

1. Scene darlings Circa Survive released the much anticipated sophomore record yesterday. The band decided to release On Letting Go at a low introductory price: "ten duckets [sic]...at most places," in an attempt to "completely stick it to the man." You further read about their take on buying records vs. downloading them here, in a message written to Absolutepunk.net by guitarist Brendan Ekstrom.
2. Charismatic and sometimes volatile, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is no stranger to strongly expressing his feelings. Here, he pontificates about the death of the CD format. He does make a few arguments that he just simply doesn't back up, and at times he talks in absolutes (Remember, only Siths talk in absolutes), but for the most part, he makes some valid points, such as this: "We are in a market where, whether we like it or not, the music industry has tethered us to our PCs." You can read more about his views here.
3. This article deals with bands that self-finance, and spotlights Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and Wilco. As with most online journalism these days, it's not terribly informative, but there are a few pertinent quotes, such as this one from Wilco helmsman Jeff Tweedy"Technology has evened the playing field. If the artist can gain more power over the situation — over the economics of the situation — why wouldn't they take it?"

• Finally, here are the three bands I've been super gay for over the past weekend. Seriously, Sherwood's A Different Light, Inkwell's These Stars Are Monsters, and The Dear Hunter's The Meaning Of, & All Things Regarding Ms. Leading are all that I've been playing. I strongly suggest that you check them out. If you're into the whole downloading thing, I recommend you obtain the following awesome tunes: Sherwood: "Song In My Head," "The Best In Me," and "Alley Cat;" Inkwell: "The Tragedy of David Gribble," "Jazzercise In A Tie," and "This One's For Kermit Washington;" (Note: Amazon.com is packaging this CD with Monty Are I's "Wall Of People, and when you buy both together, you save exactly $0.00. Such a deal!) The Dear Hunter: "The Oracles On The Delphi Express," "Red Hands," and "Dear Ms. Leading."

So that should be good to occupy you for a short time. I've got a couple of cool longer essays in the works, too that should be posted up within the next few weeks, including my aforementioned "state of the music industry" journal, a book review for "Everybody Hurts," and a super secret collaboration I and a colleague are working on that will make you want to break out your Pietasters records and start picking up the change. So until then, all the best!