Punk and Pretenders
July 8th, 2009 - Written by stevek
All Time Low: Nothing Personal
Whatever publicist or marketing guru that labelled Baltimore music act All Time Low as Pop Punk could not have had any grasp of what Punk Music really is; even the so-called “Pop Punk” genre of the guyliner-wearing lead singers of Green Day, My Chemical Romance et al are closer to genuine Punk music than this act. Hell, they make Avril Lavigne look butch.
Apparently somewhere along the line people in the music industry forgot what Punk music is. Now, any kid wearing his hair combed over one eye and affecting effeminate teenage rage is considered “Punk”. God help us all.
What All Time Low, especially on their latest ‘Nothing Personal’ are, is Bubblegum Pop with dirty words. Punk is far more than the occasional use of the word “Fuck” and one-second bursts of guitar feedback at the intro to a song displayed here. Remove these two elements from the 12 asinine, candy-coated tracks on ‘Nothing Personal’, and All Time Low sound about as insipid and edgy as the Jonas Brothers.
While the album is capably produced and technically well performed, the fact of the matter is, ‘Nothing Personal’ is completely and utterly devoid of soul. I hated this CD. The radio ready opening track and single “Weightless” has more in common with the Disney Channel’s Greatest Hits than it does with Punk or even Pop Punk. Likewise, “Damned if I do Ya”, the other single off this atrocity, is rife with coy sexual innuendos that are about as subtle and clever as a twelve year old who just discovered Benny Hill jokes.
Singer Alex Gaskarth has declared that this album is supposed to “…explore something a little bit deeper. We’re exploring some new moods, which is cool…” I got the impression Gaskarth and his bandmates were simply trying to act cool in front of their older brother’s friends.
This album is an absolute fake. It’s not Pop Punk, it’s certainly not Punk…it’s Pretend Punk, and not even a good example at that.
All Time Low: Nothing Personal
Hopeless Records
Steve’s Rating: 4/10
Fattooth: Limited Edition Debut Album
Now, if you want to know what Punk is supposed to sound like, pick this one up. Bridging the divide between Metal and Punk, Fattooth are a group of crazy musicians with no small love of irony, stage production, screaming and technically complex, hard-driven Punk.
The team of vocalist Hucifer, Mihran Boudakian and George Xipoleas formed up and produced a highly explosive, angry, powerful and really LOUD punk act with brilliant lyrics that alternately drip with seething rage, cruel sarcasm and shockingly refreshing (or refreshingly shocking) lyrical imagery. Though Fattooth like to call themselves the AC/DC of Pun, owing to Hucifer’s screeching falsetto, their intensity and investment in the Blues roots of all things in the Rock and Roll tree reminds me more of Henry Rollins, and even more of old-school Punk Rockers like Black Flag, Suicidal Tendencies or Fear. These guys are the real deal, and the 9 tracks on ‘Limited Edition Debut Album’ are too few for my ears.
Best on the album are the tracks “High Time At Low Tide”, “The More Machine” and “Red Neck Metal Head”. The only weakness here is “Bacteria”, which seems more like a high school Punk band’s lunchroom satire. Other than that, the rest of the album is fully-loaded and evocative of a much more raw and rancid era in Punk history.
Fattooth: Limited Edition Debut Album
Reversed Records
Steve’s Rating: 8/10
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