Review: Yellowcard – Ocean Avenue (Acoustic)

AbsolutePunk Aug 20, 2013

Welcome back to another round of the AP.net Roundtable – an article revolving around a much-anticipated album and the discussion it inspires amongst a handful of staff members. Today’s roundtable article features Jason Tate, Craig Manning, Ryan Gardner, Cody Nelson and myself discussing Yellowcard’s latest release, Ocean Avenue Acoustic. Throughout the discussion we touched on which renditions were executed the best, favorite moments on the release, and why this album has affected so many pop-punk fans. So pick up your copy of Ocean Avenue Acoustic, put the needle down, and check out the latest AP.net Roundtable discussion in the replies. – Drew Beringer

AbsolutePunk Dec 23, 2012

Sometimes, an album takes you by surprise. Sure, you’ve heard tracks by the band previously and you had high enough expectations, hence you picking up the album in the first place, but you didn’t expect to be particularly taken aback by it. You certainly didn’t expect to find yourself casually raving about how *insert somewhat unknown band name here* is the “best band ever!” after only a couple of listens to the record, but hell, that’s how it happens. Modern Baseball are one of these bands. Previously, all I’d heard was a split with Marietta, released early this year, and a handful of demo tracks, and whilst they were promising, Modern Baseball hadn’t quite established themselves as protegees, more ones to watch. So, their first full length, Sports, was a record to look out for rather than a highly anticipated one. However, by Jove, it’s a lot more than that. It appears that Modern Baseball are certainly the best band you’ve never heard of.

AbsolutePunk Dec 12, 2012

When it comes to Blink-182, there’s not much the three piece hasn’t done. They’ve released a couple classic albums, released even more classic songs, become a staple in modern rock music – and everything in between. Teenagers and adults took the Internet by storm when the band announced that they were reuniting back in 2009 after a four-year hiatus. Two years later came the release of the band’s first album in eight years, Neighborhoods. However, it left a sour taste in a lot of people’s mouths when it was revealed that the band recorded the majority of the album separately, sending each other tracks via the Internet. While the album followed in the musical direction of the band’s untitled album, it left more to be desired, especially with the uncertainty of when we would hear more material from the band. Then in October the news broke that the band had left their longtime home at Interscope and planned to continue as independent, like many others are in these changing times in the music industry. Shortly after the announcement of the band leaving Interscope, the guys tweeted that new music would be out before the year was over: the Dogs Eating Dogs EP.

AbsolutePunk Nov 26, 2012

Just before the band’s soundcheck in Philadelphia, we were able to get on the phone with Sum 41’s Deryck Whibley and ask him a few questions about the record that officially turns 10 years old today.

AbsolutePunk Nov 4, 2012

Bayside has a wealth of early material to boast about, but the band has continued to improve and impress as it has aged. The group’s most recent LP, Killing Time, proved to be one of its strongest records, as Bayside executed with excruciatingly enjoyable precision the formula we’ve grown to love it by. While fans wait patiently for another full batch of Bayside tunes, the New York natives offer up the Covers, Vol. I EP, a collection of five cover songs designed to hold fans over until new music arrives.

The one thing that Bayside does very well on this covers EP – and the EP’s strongest characteristic, in fact – is that the band does a helluva job making these songs sound like Bayside songs. Anthony Raneri’s nasally vocals and Jack O’Shea’s persistent shredding on the guitar are accounted for and produced brilliantly – just because these aren’t original tunes doesn’t mean Bayside took the easy road on this release.

AbsolutePunk Oct 2, 2012

There’s a fine line between imitation and innovation. All Time Low had two options: try to be the next Fall Out Boy or try to be All Time Low. They chose the latter and for that, myself along with many others worldwide are eternally happy with this decision. After the band’s breakthrough album, So Wrong It’s Right, pressure mounted on the four young men from Baltimore, Maryland to be the next big crossover act from the scene. What followed were Nothing Personal and Dirty Work, two albums that saw the band go from simply a pop-punk act to spreading its wings and diversifying its sound. Unfortunately, the attempt to write the next big radio hit was not a successful venture and All Time Low had to return to the drawing board. Although not critically as well-received as its predecessors, it showed the band had chops to transition from the Warped Tour crowd to a potentially bigger atmosphere. It was just the early stages of what sets up Don’t Panic, the band’s fifth full-length album to date.

AbsolutePunk Sep 19, 2012

Kevin Devine and Andy Hull didn’t want Bad Books to be a one time thing, and with Bad Books II, they’re also showing it’s not a one trick pony. Today we’re bringing you the premiere of “It Never Stops,” which can be heard in the replies. The song carries like an angsty Wilco cut found on a Ryan Adams record. Let us know what you think in the replies. Pre-orders for the album can be found here.

AbsolutePunk Sep 17, 2012

There is a long running joke/discussion among my best friends about how close Mineral’s guitar licks and tone don’t stray far from that of Temple of the Dog. It’s a stretch, but it brings up the point that we often try to dice apart whole genres so much, and I often wonder why. Is it because there is a distinct sound to the music at hand? Or is it really to separate something you love from something you hate, but secretly love due to popular opinion? Is everything that’s played on the radio awful? No. Given better timing and marketing, some of underground’s most notable acts could have been bigger than they turned out to be.

AbsolutePunk Sep 4, 2012

Propagandhi never deluded itself into thinking that it was a serious name. The part 1984-esque, part Indian icon portmanteau was merely an off-the-cuff invention from a group of sixteen year olds. Starting with How to Clean Everything and Less Talk, More Rock, the theme of child’s play ran the lyrical gamut from bare ferocity to side-splitters; Chris Hannah commanded the pulpit, telling patriotic blockheads to shove flags up their asses while inviting bomb-vested rendezvous to G7 “picnics”. Those wit coated antics tapered off eventually, and a relatively more stoic behemoth kicked in by way of Death and Voivod.

AbsolutePunk Jul 6, 2012

In the midst of their run on Warped Tour, I sat down with three of the gentlemen in Taking Back Sunday to discuss a bit about the nostalgia of Warped, their upcoming anniversary tour for Tell All Your Friends and bands they wish would do tours on a single record.

AbsolutePunk Jul 3, 2012

With the implosion of Elektra Records, Lucky Boys Confusion found themselves without a label and bursting with creative energy. The Illinois quintet formed their own imprint, Townstyle Records, in the meantime, and decided to record a 5-track EP titled How To Get Out Alive. Lucky Boys Confusion thrives off grandiose, sugary hooks and edgy instrumental parts, make no mistake about it. The band plays pop punk, but it has a little something extra to set this EP apart from those generic contemporaries of theirs. The lyrics are insightful, powerful, and well written; something you rarely see on a pop punk disc of any length.

AbsolutePunk Jun 26, 2012

Even though Maroon 5 always seemed to have a place in mainstream relevance, it was obvious that their powerhouse level fluctuated throughout the years. Maroon 5’s breakout debut record, Songs About Jane, saw late success in 2004 (it was first released in 2002) reaching impressive heights with 3 top 20 singles and over 9 million copies sold worldwide. While their follow-ups hit benchmarks that some artists dream about (platinum and double platinum, respectively), they still never quite measured up to what Janeachieved, and what the band is capable of executing in general.

AbsolutePunk Dec 22, 2011

There is nothing more fascinating in music than watching a band progress before your very ears. It’s even better when a band’s progression coincides with that band’s improvement. And I can’t believe it, but The Maine has improved a whole ton in a year and a half. I don’t think that a major label can ruin a band by itself, but Black & White, The Maine’s debut for Warner Bros., was a complete dud. Pioneer won’t be as friendly to a mainstream demographic, and maybe that’s one of the reasons why the band decided to release the record itself.

AbsolutePunk Nov 17, 2011

It only took five minutes to prove that Marianas Trench were the real deal.

The opener to the pop-rock quartet’s sophomore effort, Masterpiece Theater, was breathtaking to say the least. “Masterpiece Theater I” presented everything to love about the genre – soaring harmonies, memorable instrumentation, and hooks to go crazy for. The band’s prime selling point took place within vocalist Josh Ramsay, who gave unreal performances on nearly every song on the album. Marianas Trench had something special going for them, and it was easy to say that their follow-up had a lot to live up to. In company with Masterpiece Theater’s incredible solidarity, it also ended up selling platinum (in Canada), with numerous platinum and gold singles to go along with it. That alone sets the bar enormously for the highly anticipated Ever After – and it’s the band’s best offering to date.

AbsolutePunk Nov 14, 2011

There’s a certain pocket of bands writing really good “rock” music these days. Maybe even “alternative” for the sake of genre-specific argument. For the sound I’m speaking of, I’ll define “rock” music as that of the genre most of us grew up with when the radio wasgood. Whether it was Nirvana, Tool, Nine Inch Nails, Pearl Jam, The Smashing Pumpkins, etc. – we knew there was beauty and thought between the layers. Every now and again a band will come along that will paralyze us with a sound built on grit, feedback and cryptic auras stacked like a triple pane glass wall thickly layered in percussion, deafening guitars and a guilt-ridden, beautifully sparked voice. All of these thoughts were running through my head the first time I heard O’Brother’s debut full-length, Garden Window, and they continue to do so.

Review: Yellowcard – Ocean Avenue (Acoustic)

Review: Modern Baseball – Sports

Review: Blink-182 – Dogs Eating Dogs

Interview: Deryck Whibley of Sum 41

Review: Bayside – Covers, Vol. I

Review: All Time Low – Don’t Panic

Bad Books – “It Never Stops” (Song Premiere)

Review: Basement – colourmeinkindness

Review: Propagandhi – Failed States

Interview: Taking Back Sunday

Review: Lucky Boys Confusion – How To Get Out Alive EP

Review: Maroon 5 – Overexposed

Review: The Maine – Pioneer

Review: Marianas Trench – Ever After

Review: O’Brother – Garden Window