Sire / London/Rhino
2007
New Wave
About This Album
There is a legion of Against Me! fans who want only for the band's music to sound exactly as it did on Reinventing Axl Rose -- scrappy punk/folk and nothing else. But with as talented a songwriter as Tom Gabel leading the way, it's ridiculous to think that the band would be satisfied complying. Growth is necessary; change is inevitable. In the case of New Wave, different doesn't automatically mean bad. As their first album on major label Sire, it's a straight-up rock record. Especially thanks to Butch Vig in the production seat, New Wave is crisp, direct, and sharp. It's clean, but not glossy; it's defiant; it's brash; it's heartfelt. And while it's true that New Wave doesn't initially hit with the same force as prior albums, a few spins later and the record has found its footing and sinks in brilliantly. Though the sound is not raw and gritty like those early days, the passion behind the songs is the exact same. There is a real sense of frustration guiding these tracks -- with society, with the music scene -- but as the title track incites, "We can be the bands we wanna hear/We can define our own generation," Against Me! shows resilience. The catchy bounce-step of songs like "Up the Cuts" and "Stop!" (one of their danciest numbers yet) recognizes the hollowness of fame and hype, and the former's probing "Are you restless like me?" is as urgent a plea as you'll hear on record this year.
Track List (try tracks 2,4,5,7 and 8)

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