| CD REVIEW Rise Against |
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Band : Rise Against This Chicago based Melodic Punk Rock band was formed in 1999 when members of the just broken up 88 Fingers Louie mergered with members of Baxter. In a first line-up (with which they never played live) consisting of Tim McIlrath (vocals), Mr. Precision (guitar & backing vocal), Joe Principe (bass & backing vocals), and Tony Tintari (drums), the band recorded their 2000 demo EP Transistor Revolt. Taking drummer Brandon Barnes into the fold, the band started playing gigs and got signed to Fat Wreck Chords, through which they released full-length albums The Unravelling (2001, re-issued in 2005 with bonus tracks) and Revolutions Per Minute (2003). Mr. Precision left while the band was touring for the first album, as did his replacement Kevin White, the band completing the tour with Todd Mohney before starting the writing process for their sophomore album. Touring for both first albums was pretty intensive, the band taking on support slots with the likes of AFI, Agnostic Front, Mad Caddies, NOFX, No Use For A Name, Sick Of It All and Strung Out. The second album getting critical acclaim, it attracted the attention of several major record labels. The band signed to Dreamworks, recording their 2004 released Siren Song Of The Counter Culture album. However, the label was absorbed by the Universal group, and the boys found themselves re-signing to the group's subsidiary Geffen. Shortly after, Mohney left and was replaced by Chris Chasse. Heavy touring took the band throughout North America, Europe, Australia and Japan, and saw the band play on several prestigious festivals, as well as jumping on the Taste Of Chaos and Warped Tour touring festival events. With fourth album The Sufferer And The Witness, released in July 2006 (review posted 25/07/2006), the major label's hopes for commercial viability of the band came thru when the album reached #10 on teh Billboard 200 and went Platinum in Canada. December of the same year saw the release of the Generation Lost DVD (with both live a documentary and live footage), which went Gold in Canada in its first week. Just prior to their tour in support of ChemicalRomance' arena tour in February 2007, the band announced the departure and consequent replacement of Chasse by new guitarist Zach Blair of Only Crime (as well as formerly with Gwar, and touring second guitarist for The Loved Ones). Then followed a support to Billy Talent's Canadian arena tour, before a headline tour throughout the US during Summer. July 2007 saw the release of 5-track EP This Is Noise, consisting of previously recorded but unreleased material (including two Black Flag covers and a Lifetime cover). In support of the upcoming album the band signed on to several European festival dates (Download in the UK, Greenfield Festival in Switzerland, Hurricane Festival and Southside Festival in Germany) and the West Coast part of the Vans Warped Tour (August 6 to 17), and released the single Re-Eduction (Through Labor) to iTunes and other digital music stores. By the time I'm writing this, the release of the album is two weeks behind us (and it's not our fault that the review comes in so late: we've only received the promo copy late last week, and I've actually had to give priority to other releases first...I mean, I only lost two days since receiving the album anyway, you know), and so fans of the band will be pleased to find out that they aided their favourite band's latest outing debuted at #3 on the Billboard 200, making it Rise Against's highest charting album to date with over 65,000 copies sold in the first week of release! For people unfamiliar with the band's music, the band itself has listed several influences among which All (Bill Stevenson of All & Descendents, and formerly of Black Flag, not only produced the band's second album but also the two last ones, current one included...Chad Price, also in All, provided vocal backings to the Revolutions... and The Sufferer... albums), Bad Religion (especially early on in their career; McIlrath has even provided guest vocals on the track "Let Them Eat War" on BR's Live At The Palladium DVD, and in 2004 Rise Against even got to tour with their idols), Black Flag, Descendents, Minor Threat, Nirvana, and Pennywise. Those influences can still be heard in the band's current album. The album is named after th Leftist/ Socialist Party Of America's newspaper from the late 19th century. Socio-political issues are important to the band (check not only several of their songs' lyrics, but also the dedication in the booklet stating "What do you think an artist is? An imbecile who has only eyes, if he's a painter, or ears if he's a musician, or a lyre in every chamber of his heart if he's a poet, or even, if he's a boxer, just his muscles? Far from it: at the same time he is also a political being, constantly aware of the heartbreaking, passionate, or delightful things that happen in the world, shaping himself completely in their image. How could it not be possible to feel interest in other people, and with a cool indifference to detach yourself from the very life which they bring to you so abundantly?..."), and all members are vegetarians. My only criticism is that at some moments the issues are brought somewhat cryptically. Not so in the rivetting ballad "Hero Of War"! One need only listen to this acoustic song (only acoustic guitar with some keyboard and just a smidgen of electric guitar toward the end) once to understand that it is a cry of shame against US Government policies of training young people into mindless killing machines!The band is also environmentalist, as proven by the issuing of this album in a cardboard package made from recicled paper. If you're into socio-politically engaged Punk Rock with a Hardcore drive and a Rock sensibility, then Rise Above just might be up your alley! Get acquainted with the band by surfing to myspace.com/riseagainst, where you'll find 5 songs of earlier albums posted against two off the current one! The UK version of the album we got contains a bonus 14th track with "Historia Calamitatum", making the total listening time just under 52 minutes! Great album, but personally I won't vote it into my year-lists...of course you're free to do differently!!! 90/100 Tony. |