Can't Maintain - Andrew Jackson Jihad

Andrew Jackson Jihad.

A name with a twist.

A name for a band.

A band.

That’s why we’re here, isn’t it? Bands. And this one is pretty darn good.

Now, the modern ‘folk punk’ scene includes such groups as This Bike is a Pipe Bomb, Ghost Mice, Ramshackle Glory, and Defiance Ohio (among others)- and it’s the unfortunate truth that for many novice listeners of this genre they all sound pretty much the same.

Now, once you delve a little deeper the differences between each group become wildly apparent; Ghost Mice, for example, is entirely acoustic, and is easily the most frantic of the groups that I’ve listed. Defiance Ohio, aversely, uses a much more melodic approach to its songs, bordering the sphere of folk rock at times.

Andrew Jackson Jihad is a different beast. From track to track, they don’t hesitate to vault across the genre; while they typically maintain the quick-strumming and driving vocals inherent in punk music, they’re not afraid to incorporate more unusual elements- bringing me to my review of their fourth studio album Can’t Maintain.

Released in 2009 and boasting thirteen tracks, this album didn’t really garner much public attention. Like many punk bands, it supported a fairly fervent cult following.

Beginning with the stuttering “Heartilation” and the opening lines, “I want to break apart my heart, move the pieces to my car, crash it into a wall, I don’t want to feel it at all”, Can’t Maintain locks into the angsty punk groove right away.

This continues throughout the entirety of the album, with fun side-tracks such as “Kazoo Sonata in Cmaj” and the Southern Blues-esque “Love Will Fuck Us Apart”- not to mention the sixth track, “Olde(y) Tyme(y)”, which stands reminiscent of some pseudo-riverboat romp.

I would say that the highlights of this album can be found in the third track, “Love in the Time of Human Papillomavirus” (which incorporates strings large and small as well as a killer set of lyrics) and “We Didn’t Come Here to Rock” (which directly and ruthlessly calls out their critics while also making good use of percussive bells).

The twelfth track, “Who Are You?” is a fairly personal song concerning the singer’s father who was absent during his life. The lyrics are pretty righteous, and they manage to incorporate saxophone and trumpet on top of their fast-paced structure. In my opinion, this track could have easily served as the end of the album. It serves as a nice little node of emotion and the instrumentation feels tight. That being said, the final track on Can’t Maintain, titled “White Face, Black Eyes”; a sort of punkish ballad that incorporates a string section towards the end. It seems a little out of character at first listen, but, ultimately, I would say that the drawing out of the album for this one, pretty closer was a good choice.

So, at any rate, this reviewer would call Can’t Maintain a shining example of the diversity that Andrew Jackson Jihad brings to the folk-punk genre; and I would highly recommend checking out some of their other albums (People Who Can Eat People are the Luckiest People in the World and the much more briefly-titled Knife Man are great points for further exploration) as well as looking further into the folk punk scene as a whole. A score? I don’t know. If Queen’s Jazz would be a 10/10, this would probably get right at a 7/10. This is an exponential scale, right?

Pretty good score.

All right, I’m out.

The Why? Cult

While I do not quite have the lyrical prowess of our other fine friends here, I will do my best to provide what insight I may have, which primarily lies in memorizing/analyzing obscure lyrics and making sarcastic pop-culture references.

For my opening post I will discuss the band Why?. Why? is a part of the Anticon label, although they tend to stray a little further from hip hop than their label-mates. They border on indie rock, but that is by no means indicative of the entirety of their sound. What draws me to the band and back so frequently is their use of percussion instruments and bizarre lyrics. They frequently use chimes, multiple drum sets, and other percussive toys which really add to Yoni Wolfe's beat poetry style of singing. Why?'s live show is quite a sight to behold. Yoni's live rap is interesting in that he doesn't rap quite in time as would be expected and he will elongate a syllable or two, so even if you are singing along, Yoni gets the last word. Their audience interaction is completely nonsensical and hilarious, but what makes the show most memorable are Yoni's eyes. His eyes possess the most soul piercing gaze I have ever seen in my life. It is as though he is looking at everyone at once.

Recently, Why? released a fan inspired album called Golden Tickets. The album as a whole is pretty ho-hum. It has some moments, but is largely forgettable were it not for the stories behind the songs. "Dropjaw," for instance, is particularly bizarre. For Golden Tickets, a video contest was held in which the winner would have a song written about their video. "Dropjaw," the winning video, is a shirtless man with dreads simply sitting and talking at the camera without any sound.

For me, Why? was a band that I listened to once and had absolutely no clue how I felt about them. A few days later I went back and gave them a second listen, and from that point on I was hooked. If you haven't given them a listen and would like to start, Alopecia, Elephant Eyelash, and the EP Sod in the Seed are my personal favorites, although they are all pretty good albums. Also, Yoni's podcast, http://whywithaquestionmark.com/, is quite entertaining. It is updated quite frequently and includes interviews about a huge range of topics. At the time of posting, the most recent podcast has an interview with Sean Daley (Atmosphere). They discuss rap in the modern era and what it is like to be an aspiring rapper. Why? and Yoni's podcast are definitely worth a listen.

Kane White's Favorite Albums of 2013, YEAH!

Wow! 2013 was a great year to be a person! It was also a great year to be someone that likes music, and it just so happens that I like music. I also really like lists, so I have one here. Below are my favorite albums from 2013, or "the year that mankind was almost apocalypsed." Keep in mind that these are all albums that were released in 2013. I didn't include anything from other years, and they're in no particular order. Okay, let's do this...

Melt-Banana - Fetch

This album is crazy and intense. The lyrics are all but unrecognizable, and that guitar sound is ridiculous, but it all comes together in the best possible way (or the worst, depending on who you ask). Thanks to The Needle Drop for introducing me to Melt-Banana.

Queens of the Stone Age - ...Like Clockwork

Josh Homme brings rock to us lowly mortals once again on ...Like Clockwork, this time with less stoner rock and more sauntering-guitar-monster-tracks and piano ballads. This one is a really fun listen.

Youth Lagoon - Wondrous Bughouse

YL's 2011 release, The Year of Hibernation, was a pretty exciting collection of self-produced indie anthems. Wondrous Bughouse, released earlier this year, took that same sound, layered it a little thicker, and made a really coherent and interesting record. The album art is actually pretty fitting for the listening experience.

Black Milk - No Poison No Paradise

This is probably my favorite hip-hop album of this year, Run the Jewels getting runner up. The production on this album is amazing, and "Sunday's Best" and "Monday's Worst" are must-listens. Seriously, go right now and listen to them on Youtube. Actually, here:

It's not lyrically life-altering, but No Poison is a super refreshing hip-hop album with some seriously genius beats. 

Speedy Ortiz - Major Arcana

This one's a pretty straightforward indie rock album, but the use of jagged guitar and vocal melodies is pretty exciting throughout Major Arcana. It's got a lot of catchy songs and some really interesting lyrics, and a few spots here and there rock pretty hard thanks to some great drumming.

Swearin' - Surfing Strange

Sometimes I get the feeling that I'm the only person on the internet that enjoys Swearin' over their sister band, Waxahatchee. They're more or less making the same brand of lo-fi indie rock, but the garage band attitude that Swearin' puts forth on Surfing Strange is undeniably satisfying for fans of toned back production.

Baths - Obsidian

What a strange, twisted, catchy, album this is. Baths uses some pretty disturbing imagery on Obsidian, an album mostly dealing with death and sickness, but musically, it's the same Baths writing some good electronic hooks.

Deafheaven - Sunbather

I don't really listen to black metal, so I debated whether I should mention this album. But I do really love Sunbather, and that's probably all that matters. Maybe I jumped aboard the hype train (again) with this band, but any record that transcends genres like this one is worth a listen. The songs are epic in the truest sense of the word -- Massive, sprawling, powerful -- but they're also well composed, and little rays of light shine through brutal guitars and growls periodically on Sunbather. 

Los Campesinos! - No Blues

Definitely not my favorite Los Campesinos! album, but No Blues still stays true to the most lovable aspects of LC! Gareth Campesinos lyrics are as witty as ever, and I'll still listen through and chuckle at lines that I didn't hear or understand before. If you do listen to this album, don't try to fight the silliness of "Avocado, Baby." That final refrain is pretty cheesy, but it's undeniably catchy and you might end up singing it to yourself all day if you're anything like me.

Streetlight Manifesto - The Hands That Thieve

Hooray for ska! Streetlight sounds like they've matured a lot on their newest record in just about every way. But who am I to judge maturity? I still listen to ska.

Savages - Silence Yourself

This album rocks hard, plain and simple.

Vampire Weekend - Modern Vampires of the City

This album grew on me a lot, and I even liked it when it first came out. I just wish "Young Lion" was twice as long, because every time I hear it, it stays in my head for hours. I won't disagree with anyone that says this was the best release of 2013, because it really is a beautiful album from beginning to end. That said, I'd rather promote Modern Vampires for what I think it really is: the most relevant record of the year. You'll be hard pressed to find a band that's more representative of what popular music is today and where it'll hopefully be going in the future.

So, that's my year in review in blog post format. Tell me what you think. Hopefully you got a little something from this and if you have your own personal feelings about 2013, feel free to share them! Until next time, friends.

- Kane

Jim Hall and Pat Metheny

Facebook has so kindly informed me that "Jim Hall" is trending, as the jazz guitar legend passed away this Tuesday. I can't say I know very much about this man, except that he was featured on a CD that played in my car for about a month straight. The 1999 album, "Jim Hall and Pat Metheny" is a jazz compilation of dueling guitars in the very best sense of the term: not a competition to see whose fingers move faster over predictably distorted licks, but more of a call and response of softly-picked melodies that just sit right.

I'm more drawn to Metheny's playing, and I think he sort of overshadows Hall in this album, but that's not to say Hall isn't relevant. In particular, the second song of the list, a take of "All the Things You Are" is fantastic. Metheny's characteristic improvisation underlies Hall's creative interpretation of the head to open the piece. I really get a sense that these two gentlemen have utmost respect for each other and are reveling in each other's greatness.

The album continues on with songs that didn't even bother to be named. "Improvisation No. 1" is the first of five songs that seem like they derived from an uncontrollable need to just let loose and have fun in the recording studio. When two giants of their genre do this, it's good enough to publish. Along with the improv numbers, there are seven recorded tracks to go along with six live tracks.

If you're into jazz, or just want to get a taste of the late jazz icon, I would recommend this album. Just take a moment to appreciate the masterful tone of these two guitars, and their clean, serene melodies.

Queens of the Stone Age - ...Like Clockwork

"So good to be an ant who crawls atop a spinning rock," sings Josh Homme halfway through QOTSA's newest album. But if Mr. Homme is an ant, I don't even want to know what that makes the rest of us. Josh Homme has been churning out hard-hitting, face melting, guitar-heavy rock albums for longer than I've been alive. He's been with Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age, Eagles of Death Metal, Them Crooked Vultures, and he even produced an Arctic Monkeys record. The scary thing is that everything he does is awesome. Sure, these bands don't venture far out of the world of "rock music," but it's amazing how these bands manage to be diverse and interesting on their own.

So now we have ...Like Clockwork, released half a year ago, and it's fantastic. Everywhere that Queens of the Stone Age has left me feeling unsatisfied in the past has been completely corrected. Where other QOTSA albums could get a little too hazy, ...Like Clockwork keeps things up front almost all the way through. There's a good hook in almost every song and licks and tricks are flying all over the place. If I had a dollar for every good guitar solo on this album, I'd have enough money to go out and buy QOTSA's next record. Even more in-your-face are Josh Homme's vocals. Like a big muscular siren, he draws listeners in with his smooth voice and kills them with lines like "I blow my load over the status quo." Even at the vulnerable moments, QOTSA sounds fearless. Josh Homme's intro in "The Vampyre of Time and Memories," a pretty base composition of piano and vocals, still manages to demand attention before growing into a new-age rock ballad. 

Sure, it's nothing genre-changing, and mainstream rock music still probably sucks as a whole (I haven't checked in awhile), but ...Like Clockwork makes me thankful that Josh Homme is still trying to be interesting with the vocal, guitar, bass, drum set-up. So let's take the time to thank QOTSA for validating the "rock band" in 2013 by picking up an instrument and jamming. Good luck with finals, everybody. You are all awesome!

Check out the video for "My God is the Sun," with a giant winged skull shooting laser-beams from its mouth.

- Kane

Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Live at the Fillmore

This last summer, I managed to snag tickets and see the “Yeah Yeah Yeahs” at Fillmore Theater in Detroit. Their opener was not very good; the set list was mostly about sex, (my particular favorite was one about sex robots) and they concluded by passing out the condoms in their pockets, which was a grand total of two. Pressing onward to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs; let me just start off by saying that Karen O., their lead singer, is a goddess. I’ve never seen someone have as much fun, or own a stage, as brilliantly as she does. She is unshakably enthusiastic, her outfits are glittery insanity (she changed them twice), she does NOT skimp on the confetti bombs (the confetti got all the way up to the balcony where I was), and she loves encores (there were three).

She was jumping for literally the entire show (she was even bouncing when she played keyboard for a couple songs), managed to break 3 mics by the end of the show, spit water on the standing room and just generally caused a ruckus. Karen O. was so wound up that it was hard to tell if she was naturally peppy, or if she’d done a line of coke before going onstage. In spite of her rather insane behavior, the music was quality. Looking for an excellent show? Look to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs; they know how to fire up a crowd and keep them going all night.

“It’s Blitz!” is an excellent driving album, one that was pretty much permanently in my car’s CD player all through high school. I do homework and blog to this album (I’m listening to it right now, as a matter of fact) and it’s my go-to for getting fired up/staying awake/focusing on work. Look, if you’ve never listened to them, I highly suggest you do.

Happy Listening!

-Hanae

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Zero

Frances The Mute -- The Mars Volta

I am the kind of pretentious privileged upper-middle class white male that prides emself (sic) on not listening to hard rock, preferring the less wall-of-sound varieties. I am the kind of pretentious fancier-of-self-being-no-more-than-a-thoroughly-hubris'd-human-and-subject-to-the-base-impulses-thereof person that prides emself on not listening to prog rock, discrediting it as only for those caught up in illusions of grandeur, and of art as a mystical experience, preferring rather the simple, catchy, still-less-mainstream hooks of Good Shoes or White Rabbits.  Most of all, I am the kind of arrogant skeptical, cynical, unwilling postmodernist that condemns "experimental", "artsy" music, preferring something simply enjoyable.  Frances the Mute, then, rubs against just about every grain that I have... And I found it immensely, complexly enjoyable.  From the first four minutes of banging on pipes with amelodic tones in the background in the titular track, to the compelling, catchy theme at the start of "The Widow," that remains only rarely repeated, tauntingly; from the ragingly loud riffs scattered here and there, to the relaxed latin salsa of L'Via L'Viaquez; from the excessively mixed meter, to the presence of synth and overproduction of the sound, to the raw emotion and the fact that you don't notice a song transition until the album is over: Frances the Mute is the odyssey of an album that a balladic prog rock artist can only hope to achieve, if they ever aspire to relevance to an audience that prides itself on more than just esoterica.  This album was originally only 6 tracks, but the distributor required The Mars Volta to split some of the tracks up in order for it to be able to be released as an album rather than as an EP.  Many copies of this album come without the first track included, as it is otherwise too long to fit on a single CD.  The titles of the songs in this album come from the names of people in a diary found in the back seat of a car being processed by a friend of the artists who worked as a repo man, that told a story of a man's search for his biological parents.  That's how artsy, prog-rocky this album is.  Even so, though, the hauntingly natural mix of English and Spanish in the vocals, as overproduced as it is, manages to lend a certain irresistible familiarity to the album as a whole, weaving one entire narrative, only partially comprehensible, forcing one to consider the vocals as simply another instrument, often, rather than as a conveyor of sense.  Many albums are interesting, fun, well-put together, and intriguing.  This album, though, in the words of someone wise before their time, is the kind of album that a few times a year, you just want to turn off all the lights, lie down on a mattress, and actively listen to, letting the sound wash over and through you, for one and a half glorious hours.
             

Swearin' - Surfing Strange

When I started listening to this album and "Dust in the Gold Sack" started out -- a single female singer strumming open chords on an acoustic guitar-- I already had a few guesses as to where things would be going. I was prepared for a nice folksy number with some pretty vocal harmonies or a cute keyboard melody, but what came next was actually just about as unexpected as it was blatantly appropriate. When that little feedback squeal (arguably the best sound an electric guitar can make) started to squeeze its way into the scene, I knew I would love the next 3 minutes of my life. And I did. It's not often that a band breaks free from the current stadium-indie-rock paradigm of synthetic sounds and top notch production value. Instead, Swearin' takes the subtle approach: a basement jam session style rock band that doesn't try too hard to be artsy or groundbreaking. It's the kind of music that comes naturally. No hook is too wild, no line is too poetic, no beat is too complicated. It's just fun and familiar. You can almost smell that basement musk, see your band mates leaning on tables with guitars, hear the chatter of good friends, only half interested in the music being created a handful of feet away. With Surfing Strange, Swearin' invites you into their world -- a world that sounds a little bit like Pavement, Guided By Voices, and the Breeders -- not to partake in some grand musical experience, but just to enjoy and belong. Notice the sound of a light guitar pick slapping against strings, or an extraneous bass or guitar note here and there. 

On the other hand, Swearin' manages to take this tempestuous mixture of "loud" and make it into a coherent, smart set of songs. The heavier uptempo songs are offset with toned back tracks, all of which maintain a nice level of scuzzy. Lyrically, Swearin' serves up a nice set of unreserved confessions and unashamedly honest observations. "When you get older you'll realize what this was. It wasn't love. Or you won't, and you'll remain ignorant and in pain," hums Allison Crutchfield, accompanied by nice slow bass chords on "Loretta's Flowers", one of my favorites on the album. 

Sure, Surfing Strange probably wasn't an album aimed at changing the musical world as we know it. Instead, it comes across as an album meant to be enjoyed at face value, and at face value, it's really just a collection of good songs from a good band. Do you really need more?

"Dust in the Gold Sack" 

-Kane 

Melt-Banana - Fetch

So, like... Here's an album. Normally when I do one of these little "blog things" I listen to my choice album over and over again until I know exactly how I feel about it. In the case of Melt-Banana's new album, Fetch, I can't really do that. At most, I can handle about three listens through this album per day and then anything after that is almost unbearable to me. Similarly, if I listen to the Mars Volta or pop music for more than two hours I get a headache and it starts to make me nauseous. Fetch doesn't quite reach that level but it's still pretty close to that same feeling. 

"Wow, sounds like you hate this album!" is what you might think at this point, but that's not the case either. I actually think Fetch is one of the coolest new albums I've heard in awhile. But, while I really enjoy it, my ears also have a hard time managing the unrelenting sounds of piercing guitar tone, massive drum beats, and a Japanese girl yelling at me in a language I don't understand. On the other hand, those are the same things that make this album so crazy and so fun. The guitars shred, and not in a really technical "behind the back tapping, double hammer-on arpeggiated sweeps" kind of way. I mean, this guitarist is probably doing bad things to his guitar to get such a heavy sound out of such a bright tone. AND THE TONE! The guitar tone on songs like Candy Gun and My Missing Link could probably kill a man if you stuck him in a room and turned the volume to max. The drum beats are so heavy and loud, and the bassist lays down some tasty (loud) grooves through the entirety of the album. But, the thing that makes Melt-Banana is lead singer, Yasuko Onuki, whose high pitched, cartoony vocals stab through songs in a way that's just as unforgiving as the rest of the instrumentation. When it all comes together, Melt-Banana gives listeners a truly intense listening experience.

Please don't get me wrong: I'm not trying to say this is the best album ever and everyone should like it. In fact, I'd be more surprised if I found someone else that could get behind this album with me and agree that it's actually really kickass. It's an adventurous album. I showed this to a friend and he said "This is just not what I think of when I think 'Kane White,'" and I had to agree with him. If you share musical interests with me, then this album will probably be extremely uncharacteristic of what you normally listen to. Don't let that stop you! Maybe you'll love it, maybe you'll hate it. Either way, at least you can say you tried before your ears started to bleed and your brain oozed out of your nose. 

Check out their song "My Missing Link" below (y)

Afterlife - Arcade Fire

I'm not reeeally a huge Arcade Fire fan these days, but their new album, Reflektor, was released today and I must say I'm pretty excited about it. I haven't listened to it enough to tell you anything meaningful about it, but so far it's been very dig-able. As a whole, the album has some ups and downs, but generally it stays enjoyable from beginning to end. 

One song in particular, "Afterlife," was the clear standout on this album for me. As Win Butler dishes out a barrage of heartfelt lyrics-- "When love is gone, where does it go?"-- a driving beat and great backing vocals combine to create the most instantly accessible songs on the album. Now, if you ever really got into their debut album, Funeral, then maybe you remember "Haiti"-- one of Régine Chassagnes feature songs. "Haiti's" catchy acoustic guitar riff and tender vocals made for a pretty pleasant change of pace in Funeral and it was one of my favorites for awhile. When things began to wrap up with "Afterlife," I couldn't help but be amazed at what a clear progression this band has made over the years. "Afterlife" is a little more anthemic and the lyrical content takes a big shift from the narrative in "Haiti" but the songs are so strikingly similar. It feels like Arcade Fire dug up "Haiti," replaced the guitars with keyboards and layered on the production effects. It's clearly still the Arcade Fire that the indie world fell in love with oh so long ago, but I'd say they've gotten a little smarter and-- dare I say it-- a little older. But I think Arcade Fire has a long career ahead of them and so far they've aged brilliantly. 

Here's "Afterlife" on the Colbert Report!

I can't wait to hear what people have to say about this album, and let me know if you like the song!

-Kane 

Miley Cyrus - Bangerz

I said I would. It was not easy. Sorry in advance.

Miley Ray Cyrus. Yes, the beloved daughter of famed country singer Billy Ray Cyrus. The adorable, innocent teen idol who starred on the Disney Channel’s hit show Hannah Montana. The cute and lovable singer of classic feel good hits such as “Party in the USA” and emotional, tear-jerking ballads like "The Climb". Yes that is the Miley Cyrus we grew to love and adore.  However in 2013 we were presented with a new Miley. Twerk Miley. With Twerk Miley came her latest album BANGERZ. Unlike any of her previous works, Bangerz uses a mix of over produced records and electronic beats to hide the true vocal talent of Ms. Cyrus. Miley proves once and for all she is no longer that same innocent Disney Channel star we once knew. However her attempts for an “edgy” and “hardcore” album frequently fall short. She ends up creating an album that is hard to decide who Miley really is. What is created is a Rihanna-meets-Gaga-meets-Pink-meets-Britney-meets Taylor Swift-meets Ke$ha record. Throughout the album Miley speaks of love, sex, and drugs. It truly is an album to hide from your kids. Yet despite all of this, Miley still manages to create an album that is worth a listen, in thanks to her strong performances on the songs “Wrecking Ball” and “We Can’t Stop”.

Through her clever, or just plain stupid, use of minimal clothing, twerking, and ridiculous music videos Miley created a storm of controversy. And in doing so, one of the most talked about albums of the year. So while Miley remains a mystery, the one thing that cannot be denied is that the woman can sing.    

I could also argue that this has been the most influential albums of the year. Just try and name another an album that has caused structural changes in the same way that Bangerz has. CLICK HERE.
Grand Valley Represent. YOU WIN THIS TIME MILEY

"You think I'm strange, bitch? / Shit's bananas like a fuckin' 'rangutan, bitch”   - Miley Cyrus.

Twerk on my friends. 

Streetlight Manifesto - The Hands That Thieve

So, Thomas and I saw Streetlight Manifesto in Chicago last night. Needless to say, it was fantastic. All those gorgeous horn parts felt so perfect live and the crowd was about as involved as it could be (funny how gang vocals do that to people). I've been to few shows that made me as happy as that one, and it got me thinking about how I could love a band so much that's so different from everything else I listen to. But I don't like genres. I don't know how to describe what my taste in music really is, so I never limit myself to what I let myself enjoy, and thankfully, that's probably how I got so big into Streetlight Manifesto.

Some bands become like parents in the way we listen to them religiously as we grow up, and Streetlight is one of those bands to me. Some of my favorite memories are of driving around Goshen in my beat up Jeep blaring Somewhere in the Between with my friends. It's funny to think about all of the things that have happened over the brief five years or so since I discovered this band, and it's funny to think about how much people change in that short a period of time. Anyone that has ever used the phrase "the soundtrack of my high school years" knows exactly how I feel, even if I'm not quite portraying it in the same way you would. But recommending a band that got me through high school is difficult, mostly because if I know you now, you're probably not in high school anymore and even if you are, their music might not be the same to you. That being said, Streetlight Manifesto's newest album is ridiculously good and I think anyone with just a little love for ska could spend a few beautiful weeks (at least) with it. I suggest you give Streetlight Manifesto's The Hands That Thieve a try and maybe make a few good memories with it.

Now you've read this far, and I'm afraid you've learned very, very little about the album I'm writing about. I would apologize, but I'm not really trying to describe the album to you. I'm afraid even a brief description of what Streetlight is all about would turn most casual listeners off, and that's terrifying to me.  Please. Throw it on, and let yourself enjoy what you're listening to. It can seem overly bratty or angsty at times, but that's part of the fun. The horn parts might be a little overwhelming or silly sounding at times, but try to get used to it. I get chills consistently from the bari sax solo on "Toe to Toe," the little fugue thing and the chorus on "If Only For Memories," and pretty much every other song on the album if I'm in the right mood. Music doesn't have to be challenging or groundbreaking to be good, and I think a lot of people forget that. Appreciate all music, and you might get a little bit more out of your listening every now and then.

The title track- Enjoy! <3333

-Kane

PS: It might be worth mentioning that Streetlight Manifesto is currently boycotting themselves, so they would much rather you buy from them directly or pirate the album than contribute to Victory Records and their shenanigans. You can find all the details on their website, which I'll link below, specifically with the announcement of their boycott.

http://streetlightmanifesto.com/streetlight-manifesto-proudly-boycotts-itself/