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Forever the Sickest Kids Review- The Weekend: Friday
Forever the Sickest Kids Review- The Weekend: Friday
By: Alex Rivera
Recently, pop-punk band Forever the Sickest Kids released a new 7-track CD called The Weekend: Friday. This record is part one out of a three-part series, a new album per every “day” of the weekend. On Friday, FTSK returns with their catchy dance tunes that make any fan want to grab their hairbrush and sing into it, which proves that the band is staying true to their standards of lyrics about love, group chants, and the notorious chorus that’s bound to stay stuck in your head for about two weeks.
Friday starts off with “Do Or Die,” a song that incorporates keyboardist Kent Garrison’s synth beats with guitar riffs and bass drum beats. One thing that I noticed as I was listening to Friday was the more noticeable use of Garrison’s keyboarding interwoven in the tracks, which, unlike the previous album Underdog Alma Mater, gives the vast majority of the seven songs more of an electro-pop feel that seems to be a little more Metro Station-esque… in a good way. It doesn’t extremely divert the band from their roots, but it brings something new to the table, and that’s usually a good thing.
As the CD continues, tracks such as “Tough Love” and “She Likes (Bittersweet Love)” sound vaguely familiar, almost as if they’re new-and-improved versions of a couple of records off of UAM. But, although the guitar riffs might become slightly mind-boggling and have you question which album the record belongs to, both tracks capture FTSK’s usual melodic anthems. However, if repetition is your niche, then listen to tracks 4 and 6, “Take It Slow” and “What Do You Want From Me.” The beginnings of both songs sound EXACTLY THE SAME. When I was listening to it, I had to ask myself which song was which, because I honestly couldn’t tell the difference. That posed a problem which unfolded a couple of other ones on the album.
The last time I saw Forever the Sickest Kids, they stated that they wanted to try something new. They did in fact try something new… a hip-hop track. No, two hip-hop tracks. And, needless to say (as much as it breaks my heart), they failed miserably. Track 5 on Friday, “Hip-Hop Chick” throws in way too much synth for one person to handle, making the song sound like a random fast-paced techno track you’d hear at Ultra Music Festival. And, if the beats aren’t bad enough, the lyrics make references to Jay-Z, Soulja Boy, and “swagger” (no, not “swagGA,” “swagGER”). What? I couldn’t believe that one of my favorite bands would actually sing about this kind of stuff. To make things worse, the last song on the album does not suit the CD at ALL. “Hawkbot,” another overly-synthesized song, is an all-rap track that incoherently mixes in vocals and rhymes that don’t go with the beat, making it hard to understand. Plus, listening to vocalists Caleb Turman and Jonathan Cook rap is equally as humorous—not to mention pathetic—as the song itself (Vanilla Ice sounds better than they do). “Hawkbot” is undoubtedly Friday’s biggest disappointment.
Thus, it’s safe to say that The Weekend: Friday is a pretty decent album, despite its shortcomings. Personally, I prefer UAM to this 7-track EP-like record, but hey, it’s whatever floats your boat. If you’re like me, and you prefer the alt-rock, pop-punk FTSK dance tunes such as “My Worst Nightmare” and “Hey Brittany!” off of UAM, then you’ll find some pleasure in about two-thirds of the songs off of Friday. But, if you’re into the whole white-boy hip-hop thing, then you’ll get your fix here, too. Apparently, Friday has a little something for everybody.
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The Dear Hunter Interview
by Melanie Bae
The Dear Hunter, originally a side project of Casey Crescenzo, has flourished into a full-time gig. Along side Crescenzo are band mates Erick Serna, Nate Patterson, Andy Wildrick, Nick Crescenzo, and Josh Rheault. Crescenzo was originally in the Boston band Recieving End of Sirens, but in May 2006 Casey began working on The Dear Hunters debut album, Act I: The Lake South, The River North.
When talking to Casey he expressed how he much rather talk about a fictional character, because with a fictional character there is no restrictions. Casey produced Act I himself, and his mother did some of the backing vocals and his brother played the drums. A family’s support is always nice to see. By the time Act II: The Meaning of, and All Things Regarding Ms. Leading rolled around, Crescenzo had assembled a fun band, and the album dropped only eight months after Act I. Around the same time Act II was released, the band’s fan base seemed to pick up.
They headed out on tour with such bands as: The Format, Boys Night Out, Circa Survive, Saves The Day, Say Anything. Act III: Life and Death was released on June 23rd of this year. While listening to the album it seemed as though it had a reoccurring theme of war; Crescenzo would yet again go into detail about how it is was much easier to write about a fictional character, and that he himself had not known someone or lived through the experiences himself. As one listens to The Dear Hunter you get more than just music, you get a story of a young boy’s life experiences. The Dear Hunter had many albums to come, and they are also working on albums inspired by the colors of the light spectrum.
You might be a little confused about how the band could do this; Casey said it is not so much about the color, but what the color brings to your mind and the feelings that emerge when looking at them. There have been rave reviews about The Dear Hunter’s live performances. So as they embark on tour this fall with Mutemath, make sure you attend a show near you!
New Moon Soundtrack Review
by Diana Ciuca
The album begins with the quintessential Death Cab for Cutie song, with the electric piano and occasional wavering in and out of loud and soft harmony. The symbol of the equinox in the song displays some astrological influence upon the entire album. So far, I’m hoping that this is a themed album; fingers crossed.
Luckily, or not, the next few songs tend to stick to a similar principle. Truly, the only theme to this album can be summed up in three words: soft, indie, dreamy. After some ups and downs in tempos, beats, and instrumentation (guitars, drums, and piano), the only conclusion that can be drawn is that this is a genre piece.
The album advocates the beauty of the indie (sub/counter) culture that has motivated hipsters to invade American Apparel and also the local Salvation Army/Goodwill in search of “hot buys.” They are the picture-hoarding, iPod wearing, Twilight-reading youngsters who are fluent in the language of music and, thankfully, that of texting. By putting all these songs together, I feel like their (the individual song’s and the hip, excitable, teen’s) originality is forsaken; Nevertheless, each song, on their own, is truly a work of art – as are most indie pieces. As Andy Warhol said, “Art is what you can get away with.” Certainly, we have gotten away with much avante-gardness in the past, and this album, as fresh or unique as you want it to be, is no different. Most critics see this as a medley of wonderful musicians.
Still, I can’t help but question what is so great about these musical sensations? Usually it is the voice, or the smooth guitar, or the sound effects. This album has so much of those techniques that it almost becomes overwhelming. In conclusion, the New Moon soundtrack is like food. Sure, I love peperoni pizza, chocolate ice cream, steak, salsa, and salad. But, if you were to throw them all on one plate, I might not enjoy it as much.
The album ends with the quintessential Classical music piece, with the alternating piano and occasion speeding up and down of the tempo. The symbol of the new moon in the title displays some astrological influence upon the entire album – given that it is the title.
Sounds like you’ve heard that sentence before? It sounds like I’ve heard all these songs before, too.