The Selected Discography Of... 01.13.06: The Alkaline Trio!
Posted by Shane Viars on 01.13.2006
Hash Browns into Re-Hash Browns? Wow. I need to be clever enough to write good headers. Yikes.
Hey again all of you out there in ‘net land, Shane V. back again with another rousing edition of The Selected Discography.
The semester at school has begun, and I have no idea how it's going to turn out. The classes look fun, but who knows what is in store. And, if you happen to be in my Prose and Short Fiction class reading this; Thanks. Sorry Lou pressured you all into reading this junk, haha.
But, this week I want to take a look at the latest release of one of my all-time favorite bands, The Alkaline Trio. The reason for this is simple; I haven't had a whole lot of time to hang around and listen to an album to pick up on any hints. And it just so happens that I once reviewed this album, so it'll be a rehash of that. I know, I'm a terrible person for it, but it'll never happen again, I promise.
Back in May of 2005, the Alkaline Trio released their latest effort, Crimson. This is the first album that they've released since Derek Grant became the official full-time drummer (as he was only supposed to be temporary when "Good Mourning" was released 2 years prior) So without further adieu…
The Biography Of…
Formed in 1996, the landscape of the band was much different. Only current guitarist/vocalist Matt Skiba has remained. The original line-up also consisted of Rob Doran on bass, and Glenn Porter on drums. Doran was shortly replaced by current vocalist and bassist, Dan Andriano (Skiba sings roughly 60% of the songs, to Dan's 40%).
Over the years, there have been several replacements for the drums, which has at times seemed like a never-ending quest to fill the position. Mike Felumlee joined the band prior to the release of their 2001 album, "From Here To Infirmary," and left the band before the release of the 2003 album, "Good Mourning."
Derek Grant was originally a temporary drummer, as he was offered a gig drumming with the Misfits for their 25th Anniversary tour. He instead chose to join up with the duo, to finalize the Trio.
The Selected Discography Of…
In May of 2003, the Alkaline Trio released the album that began their climb of popularity into the mainstream of music. Good Mourning was an album that would finally solidify the band. Having been switching drummers for several years, Derek Grant opted out of drumming for the Misfits to join the Trio. This would prove to be an important move for the Alkaline Trio with their latest album, Crimson.
Derek Grant brought a lot to the band, including an ability to play around with the sounds of various string instruments as well as a synthesized keyboard. This sounds comes through very well on tracks such as "Prevent This Tragedy" and the album's first single, "Time To Waste."
Time To Waste began showing up on the radio several weeks before the album's debut, and was surprisingly well received, and a heavily requested songs in cities such as Los Angeles, Detroit and the band's native Chicago. In association with Hot Topic, the band released Time To Waste as a single CD with the song "We Can Never Break Up," which will not be on the album as an added bonus. The company produced 9000 copies, all of which have sold out. Evident that the band is finally knocking on some doors.
The focus of this album seems to be geared more toward the horror punk aspect that the band leads with. With lyrics such as "Tried to get by on bread and water/Craving blood poured from the altar now" and "Well first thing's first/We've got to find a way/To make the beauty of the/Nighttime last all day" It shows that the genre spawned by the Misfits isn't ready to give up yet.
Another point of interest in this album is the trading of lead vocals, which isn't new to older Trio fans, but will show new fans two completely different sounds. Matt Skiba, the band's guitarist and "lead" vocalist sings a lot of the faster pace, heavier songs. Dan Andriano, the bands bassist has a lower pitched, smoother voice than Skiba, and while usually lending his voice to the slower paced songs, feeds the faster pace of songs such as "The Poison" and "I Was A Prayer."
What other band do you know who has a song about the Manson family murders? Give a listen to track number 7, "Sadie" which interestingly enough first appeared on the bands BYO Record split with One Man Army. A newly recorded version provides different pacing in some parts in addition to a better recording of the female voice at the end, making what she says actually decipherable.
The Alkaline Trio has apparently used this album to break into the mainstream with a combination of new and old sounds. While people who have never heard the band will enjoy the catchier tunes such as "Time To Waste," "Back To Hell" and "Your Neck," older fans of the Trio will love how songs like "Mercy Me" and "Smoke" bring us back to a sound captured in previous albums.
It's not that this band hasn't been making music that everyone can get into, with their splicing of pop-punk and renewal of horror punk, they have simply been waiting for their music to be more widely appreciated. With the forthcoming of such bands as The Used and My Chemical Romance, the originator of the horror-pop-punk sound will finally take the stage in the foreground of their genre with this album.
The combination of powerful guitar riffs, progressive bass lines and a great backing up with the drums, in association with the experimental sounds of the keyboards, proves that this album is exactly what the Alkaline Trio has been working hard to put forward. The die-hard Trio fans will appreciate what the band they love has done, and many of these new songs will catch the ears of many new fans, and it's about time.
The best thing a band can do is to evolve with every album. While this one does have the same elements that attracted their fanbase, it is fresh enough to catch the attention of more people. The music intense, the lyrics are catchy and make you forget that half the songs deal with depressing subjects. This album hits the nail on the head when it comes to the perfect capture of sound. While some songs may not be as catchy, it is all worthwhile.
Where Are They Now?
The Alkaline Trio toured twice during the summer and fall of 2005. They headlined the "Crimson," tour, and also toured with My Chemical Romance (along with Reggie and the Full Effect reviewed here ).
Also, late last year, a special edition of Crimson was released. It contained a second CD with videos and the demo versions of the album. Unfortunately, I have yet to track down this special edition, so if anyone can get their hands on it for me, it'd be much appreciated.
Plugs for everyone!
Liberal Republican I am shamelessly plugging myself. This column has generated my first few pieces of hate mail. Wow. And not to be coy, all of the hate mail has featured very improper grammar and spelling. Hooray!
Okay, I promise; I'll never do repeating B's again. Ever.
Concert seasons starts soon. Very excited about that, and especially about potentially seeing Saves The Day. Their new album drops soon.
And I am disappointed in the fact that Orgy has yet to release Phantasmagore. They need to release it, already; I'm getting ravenous.
If you're gonna hate; don't make yourself look like an idiot.
The Raw Caption Thread is GOLDEN this week. Especially Sadam with his Fingergunz.
Enter Closing Section Header Here…Or Is This It?
It looks like we're finally ready to say goodnight. Check back next week for an all "Fresh" edition of The Selected Discography. You know you want to, so let's not even play this game where we tip-toe around the subject. You'll come back…they ALL come back…sooner or later.
