Perfect 10's: A Fever You Can't Sweat Out-Panic! at the Disco

So I'll have all sorts of irrelevant thoughts come to mind through out the day's but I seem to have a hard time really wording them which is why I almost never post on here anymore it's hard to really justify putting out sub optimal articles even if I do that fairly often but that's besides the point because I was talking to my Girlfriend a couple of nights ago and we were talking about some of her favorite bands and it occured to me that a decent amount of acts from about 10 years ago are a little too similar in terms of just how their careers laid out and I found myself comparing the year 2005 to 1991 in that there was about 3 BIG artist that kind of broke into the mainstream and defined a genre as a whole and if you're curious obviously the big 3 for 1991 the year of my birth BY THE WAY!!! ALSO MAYBE ONE OF IF NOT THE GREATEST YEARS IN MUSICAL HISTORY!!!!! were of course Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and The Red Hot Chilie Peppers who all had their biggest records and produced some of the most essential and successful alternative records of all time and it's kind of odd because that year was an impressively eclipsing debut album and two semi established acts having their commercial break and that happened again but rather then it being Grunge we had Emo have it's phase.

If you're not aware arguably the BIG 3 for the Emo boom in 2005 were Fallout Boy, Panic! At the Disco, and My Chemical Romance with of course two of them breaking through with their second album and the other having a stellar debut album which is actually the topic of today's article but for future reference if you're interested in hearing more into this I'll make those connections in a later article but for now let's discuss this perfect 10 of an album.

So if you were to ask me I'd have to say that the band that Panic! most remind me of in terms of how their career has turned out I'd have to say they're a lot like Weezer and I say this because their Debut Album is pretty much a pitch perfect collection of songs that in all honesty have no flaw's to be found and even at their worst or overplayed are perfect power pop numbers that are full of energy, clever song writting, and of course are catchy as fuck and while their second album is the better in both cases both of their second records were kind of critically under appreciated upon release and in time have been more then snubbed out by the band in question even if they're honestly the strongest records of those bands career and also in both cases both bands first album still remains their most treasured and highest sellers which is for a pretty good reason.

Now let's go back and note the things that I said were this albums strong points starting with the most important probably the fact that from beginning to end you are blasted with this kind of combination of synth heavy danceable and ever so electronic tracks that balance just enough fake instruments with the real deal to help highlight a series of songs that oddly enough was probably the strongest Brendon Urie was able to do in the course of this bands history because it's the perfect balance of kind of cheeky and dirty tunes that are meant as nothing more then fun sing alongs(I write sins not Tragedies, There's a reason these tables are numbered honey..., Lying is the Most Fun a girl can have...) and even a few songs here and there that are actually pretty serious in tone like Camsicado which is about his alcoholic father. The songs on this album are fairly natural really and listening to them through and through you can't help but want to learn all the words and sing along because even 10 years later they're still as amusingly refreshing as they were when these guy's were the biggest band on the planet.

Another thing this album has going for it is the fact that the first half of it is an electronic affair while the second half takes more a rock-ish at times almost cabaret approach which helps to break up the monotony that keyboard heavy records have and also it showcases that this band did actually have a lot more variety in them then you'd expect from their genre.

Now of course I will have to make note that the whole thing of your song titles being paragraphs of unnecessarily that they straight copied from the likes of Fallout Boy is annoying as fuck but in all honesty when that's the only bad thing you can come up with for this album you realize just why it broke them through and why we all have yet to be able to lose our nostalgia goggles when we listen to it because we all still remember just how awesomely big I Write Sins was and to this day you know if it comes on you'll still know every god damn word.

Re-Listening to this album is quite a trip still and what annoys me is that this band made a real leap forward in terms of musical direction with Pretty. Odd. even if it's songwritting wasn't on par but then because it didn't quite measure up they've spent the last couple of albums regressing and making more pop minded attempts at recreating this album which is a shame because it's the complete lack of them trying to be anything more then a bunch of young hungry kids making a record that really give this some character and strength they had nothing to prove and made a classic of their genre because of it too bad they had to follow it up but hey that's life and that's been another edition of Perfect 10's.

Quality Cuts: Camsicado, The Only Difference..., Time to dance, There's a reason these tables are numbered honey..., I Write Sins not tragedies

Song of the Day 3/21/15

Helena-My Chemical Romance

OK let’s be real here you damn well knew that one of the big 3 emo acts had to be mentioned at some point this week and in asking around what to cover it occurred to me that this week should end with probably the more semi consistent of the big 3 which for those unfamiliar would be Fallout Boy, Panic! At the Disco, and of course My Chemical Romance.

Now what always surprised me about that time frame in retrospect is how of all the bands to just kind of break out these guys were one of them and that of all the songs they did this song in particular was the one that broke them really into the mainstream and it’s not that I’m discrediting the song itself but it’s just kind of interesting to think that while I’m not OK kind of got them recognition this song got MTV rotations and people to go pick up Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge which is really a solid album but it also did eventually lead to the vastly superior Black Parade album which was the real commercial and creative peak for this band because like their contemporaries they had to expand their songs to be something more than slopped together rockers and they did which sadly that didn’t go to Danger Day’s which was the, “oh Shit our fans moved on and now we’re playing to young kids that don’t get it,” album and like their contemporaries things just kind of moved on.

All that critique aside this song still has an oddly amusing charm to it that hasn’t been to diluted to terrible follow up records like Panic! or Fallout Boy’s  more recent records though there’s a charm to going back to this semi knock off Misfits inspired act every once in a blue moon because they actually crafted plenty of good tunes that you forget just how good they actually are and it’s the fact that they just kind of said fuck it split up and have been doing there own musical adventures with Gerard Way making a semi alright solo record that’s knocking off glam rockers instead of Billy Corgan and Frank Lero is making music from his garage this band didn’t go some odd electronic direction which I can more then appreciate.

Well I guess that wraps up emo week time to bandage your cuts and remember that you’re a grown up now people but maybe in due time I can do this again because it’s kind of fun to throwback and of course there’s a shit load of acts that I didn’t cover but until then time to extra not act my age…

Song of the Day 3/20/15

Konstantine-Something Corporate

This song was actually suggested by somebody when I asked for songs for this week’s theme and while I’ve been aware of this band and more specifically their song Space I never really dived deep into their catalogue so I was rather surprised when I first heard this song and realized it was this 9+ minute piano epic of a track that just kind of explores a wide variety of feelings and emotions and also noticed there’s a shit load of comments on the video for this tune about people being taken back or put into a special place when they hear this slow burner of a tune.

Also upon doing a bit more research as to the significance of this song I also seem to read how they didn’t’ want to perform this song that often because of the fact that the lead singer felt it’d be so much a thing that he himself would have to do it every single night which is a bit excessive really but whatever this song’s still a nice slow burner of a gem that really showcases a band trying to be something more than their genre suggest and it’s held up incredibly well when compared to the rest of it’s genre.

Song of the Day 3/19/15

Uneasy Hearts Weigh the Most-Dance Gavin Dance

I was suggested to listen to this band through a co-worker of mine and after giving some of their music a listening I have to say that they’re a pretty groovy Emo outfit and this song in particular was probably the best one I recalled hearing.

It’s music is probably the best part of this song because they really use a lot of catchy alternative guitar work and this song likes to jump between kind of danceable jangly rock music, kind of screamo breakdowns, and even some very early 2000’s sounding emo and that’s even more present in it’s kind of child like lyrics that are equal parts romantic as they are disillusioned.

To put it simply this songs pretty bad ass even if the vocals are straight out of an era that has long passed.

Song of the day 3/18/15

Die Romantic-Aiden

You know every movement produces acts that are just merly place holder carbon copy acts that serve as nothing more than some individuals desperate to cash in on a craze and rush out lame carbon copy music that’s vapid and uninspired in every way and Aiden…well are one of those bands an easily forgotten attempt at Emo kids trying to straddle the line between Emo and Goth with these very terribly sang unoriginal rapid fire horror punk tunes that in all honesty got very obviously terrible with 2007’s Conviction which is best to never be acknowledged, but even with the fact that this band is so fun to unapologetically bash they still managed to actually make a few amusingly charming songs and that’s where this one in particular comes to mind.

IN all honesty I could have also chosen to write about their song, “We Sleep forever,” from the Dead Silence soundtrack but I instead chose to go with this one instead because while that one is amusingly solid a tune this one’s more fun because of it’s short length, small section of half assed screaming that seems like it’s only there to fill a quota, and of course it’s laughably charming lyrics which if you aren’t terribly singing DIE ROMANTIC ROMANTIC!!! then you don’t know what you’re missing…

Song of the Day 3/17/15

I recently got a suggestion from a co worker and after giving it a week or 2 to kind of stew it over I figured I’d have some fun this week and cover 5 Emo tunes because well why the fuck not so get your eye-liner, tight pants on because it’s time to start hating your parents and practicing your myspace pose people because it’s time for EMO WEEK!!!!

Now with that wonderful image of early 2000’s teenage culture in mind I should probably note that there’s actually a decent amount of shit to look into and be technical about when it comes to saying a song or band is emo and there’s actually different phases and sub genre’s about but to clear the air and make things easier for me I’m just going to make note that I’m more sticking with songs that are less about the genre in a sense of music and more image and lyrics so sorry for the likes of Pinkerton Era Weezer, Jawbreaker, Fugazi, and Sunny Day Real Estate because this is more modern day image focused acts that range from pop punk, post hardcore, and general alternative rock.

With that premise in mind I had to think to myself who would be the best act to stat this week with then it hit me like a ton of bricks….

Ohio is for Lovers-Hawthorne Heights

So when I think 8^th grade emo there’s one group that rules them all and that has to be this little group from Ohio and more specifically this ode to broken hearts and slit wrist in the form of 2004’s Ohio is for Lovers which years down the line is the most basic sounding scream heavy whinny verses alternative rock song that so heavily dominated a period of time in the early to mid 2000’s and while this song really isn’t anything to spectacular especially when compared to plenty of their contemporaries like Taking Back Sunday or Fallout Boy it’s still a charming song that you can’t help but listen to as the guiltiest of guilty pleasures and with that in mind nothing screams Emo better than this….