agony and irony

now that i've had a couple weeks to listen to this entire record and let it sink in, i will say that i like it. when i saw them live a couple months ago they played help me and in vein. i really liked the songs then, but then the released a 3 song EP on itunes and after giving the songs more listen, i became disillusioned with the band (ps, i definitely saw them on the hills) and had little hope for a new goddamnit. now i dont think bands need to try to constantly create a sound they owned 10 years ago, in fact, i would be rather dissappointed if this were the case, but a certain part of me will never fall out of love with the gritty alcoholic meanderings of a lovelorn matt skiba. a quick rundown of the tracks from my own very biased opinion...

calling all skeletons - a stellar way to start the record. the weird electronic handclapping thing is cool, but i mean, i like dance music. a very "this could be love" track.

help me - at first i liked this song a lot. maybe because it's the single, i'm kinda tired of it now.

in vein - danny's songs are always so good. he's vaguely reminded me of moz in a weird way for years and years. that cute lisp thing he has sometimes shines through and makes his vocals that much more real. the whoa oh ohs in the chorus make for a nouveau trio signature.

over and out - this song kinda sounds like an angels and airwaves song through the intro.  trippy prog rock guitars and tons of rev 7 on the vocals.  the subject matter is very death oriented, so it fits with the trio image.  i'm a sucker for punk rock ballads, so admittedly, i really like this song.

i found away - this song is awesome.  this band can still amaze me.  almost from here to infirmary classic trio but with better production and cooler samples.

do you wanna know? - another dan song.  i love that the bass lines in his work are always in thr forefront, it makes his songs a little heavier.  very catchy chorus, it's no she took him to the lake or crawl though.

live young, die fast - a punk rock slow dance.  damned-ish subject matter in 2/4 time.

love love, kiss kiss - after multiple listens, i think this is one of my favorite songs on this album.  try and get this chorus out of your head.  

lost and rendered - at first i thought it might be a sequel to dead and broken.  skiba can still create awesome metaphors for the shit that goes on inside our heads.  a solid track.

ruin it - a different sort of dan song with kinda creepy bass lines and weird halloweenish guitar riffs.  i love when skiba and dan harmonize in the chorus though, it makes me happy.

into the night - this was the third song on the agony and irony EP, so i've heard slightly more than the other songs, although i will say that this was my favorite song on this album upon first listen.  very HWM split era trio, a great way to end this album.

i know this may be a bit premature, but i still love this band.