Review: Midtown – Living Well Is The Best Revenge

Adam Grundy Apr 15, 2022

In the crowded scene of pop-punk bands during the early 00’s, I admittedly didn’t give Midtown as much of a hard look as I should have in retrospect. I would usually enjoy the singles that the band put on the Warped Tour compilation that came out each year, or stumble across a friend’s MP3 of punk songs on their computer that caught my ear, but I didn’t get on this band’s bandwagon until much later. After seeing Living Well Is The Best Revenge at a record store for a criminally low price, I took a chance on the album that I’ve grown to love even more so today. This album was crafted under the direction of producer Mark Trombino (Blink-182, Jimmy Eat World), and he helped Midtown hone in on the best parts of their sound to create a record that should’ve received more love and media attention. In an interview with Jason during the AbsolutePunk days, Midtown went into detail about their disdain for Drive-Thru Records, and potentially may have stunted some of the label’s desire to push the album into more commercial outlets. Controversy aside, Midtown’s Living Well Is the Best Revenge should be considered one of the better pop-punk albums to come out of this period of time.

Jason Tate Jun 29, 2004

In a music industry riddled with lineup changes, hit singles, record label grudges, and more bullshit than probably anyone is truly aware of — Midtown are still the same four guys that brought forth their debut album from what seems like so many years ago. A few years have now passed, and the trials and tribulations this band has endured goes above and beyond what any of you will ever know. Yes this band has remained, and they have pushed through the pressure that was thrown on them by the media, managers, labels, and critics alike – and yet, they stayed true and together as a band, and as friends. When they were dropped by a drowning record label (MCA Records) almost 2 years ago, it should have been the lowest point in the band’s career. They should have given up. Everyone surely expected them to. Many stood back and quietly smirked at the band’s misfortune and it was in this desperate time that the band proved to everyone just exactly where their hearts were. They didn’t see what had happened to them as a failure, or as a set back … they saw it as a blessing and as a calling to re-evaluate their music, and their lives.

Review: Midtown – Living Well is the Best Revenge

Jason Tate Apr 16, 2002

Now, is this really even fair? I mean – am I allowed to review one of my all time favorite band’s albums and be objective about it? As I type this I am actually wearing one of my Midtown T-shirts. Uh, wait a minute – am I ever objective to begin with? HAH! Yeah right. This is supposed to be my opinion anyways .. screw being objective. Midtown – Living Well Is The Best Revenge: Best album of the year or biggest flop of all time? Let’s take a look:

Midtown seems to have started a tradition of releasing the first track on their albums as the first singles. Could they possibly live up to the huge shoes “Just Rock and Roll” (from their first album) left them to fill? A soft beep.. drums kick in.. guitar picks softly .. volume increase – and Gabe’s voice fills the speakers, it’s not long before we again see the triple vocal styling of front men Gabe, Tyler, and Heath. I’ll make it simple to explain this song, you will be forced to jump off of your bed faking air guitar slams, sing at the top of your lungs, and bounce around your room until your parents threaten to send you back to college. (Wow, I am 19 years old and I am playing the air-guitar? I’m a nerd. Of course I run a website as well .. so, you already knew that.) This song starts the album off with a bang, and you know exactly where the CD is going to take you from there — these guys haven’t lost anything from where they left off — they got better.