kcro wrote  ...bunch of magical prose about alkaline
trio...

i say:

i have been waiting to chime in on this for a while
(since, i think, you posted early in the summer about
this lp).  alkaline trio are kinda like how i wish
green day would sound.  that's my best analogy, and
it's lame.

you (and any interested) should check out their song
"queen of pain" from the split c/d release with hot
water music on jade tree records (circa 2002).

lyrics like:

"you got a funny way of showing off your bathroom
surgery"

AND

"i'm not much of a jester, but i'd test poison food
for you"

make me swoon, in a sick way.

their lyrics sometimes evoke cherished fantasy rock
imagery without delving into elvinkind (not that
that's a bad thing, necessarily).  they also have a
seriously modern bent and realistic take on
relationships--a font of dark pain, as kelly
mentioned.

the best part--i'm still delving into the latest lp. 
these comments are based on past appreciation.

at their worst, this is a band that at first (few)
listens might engender a "heard one song, heard 'em
all" feeling.  but, my response to that has long been,
"well, if i happen to like that one song...so what?".
further delving reveals hidden nuance and a strong
lyrical individualism that overrides that for me.

what can i say, i'm dark.

long live pop punk's varied and creative offspring,
jenpop(-punk)

 
> --- kcronin <fiatluxury@yahoo.com> wrote:
> > howdy all:  
> > 
> > been thinking about my top 20 and am quite sure i
> > wouldn't make it to 20, since most of what i've
> been
> > indulging in is not eligible for the year's
> > best...but
> > this train o thought led me to how much i've
> > delighted
> > in the alkaline trio cd "good mourning" this whole
> > summer, and why that might be.  sure it's
> > straightforward punk-pop in the Blink 182 vein, as
> > every reviewer has said, but it's the lyrical
> > conceit,
> > carried through the whole cd, that make em
> standout
> > in
> > the field of copycat anthem writers.
> > 
> > someplace after frankenstein, edward gorey, harlan
> > ellison, and the twilight zone, but before freddy
> > krueger, the spooky cobwebbed backyard of death
> and
> > dark mysteries got exposed to the cold light of
> > irony,
> > and some mighty fertile literary ground got
> > scortched
> > in the process. Alkaline Trio recultivates this
> > muddy
> > backpatch with ringing, joyful shouts at the devil
> > in
> > a lingo Lucifer might actually sing along to: 
> "Good
> > Mourning" is the title, and the name says it all. 
> > Shrouded in the black-n-red bubblegoth ethos of
> > high-school Lestat fans, this music prevents
> > self-parody with absolutely heartfelt sentiments,
> > and
> > the shredded urgent caw of singer Matt Skiba
> (whose
> > vocal chords, it is rumored, are being devoured by
> > acid reflux owing to too much rocknroll living,
> and
> > how punk rock is that?). His songs and singing,
> > along
> > with the smoother vampyre-seductive stylings of
> > bassist Daniel Andriano, make it clear that this
> > subject matter fits him like a pair of beloved
> black
> > Docs:  what might have been average powerpop/punk
> > turns into an intriguing study of how pain and
> rage
> > in
> > a major chord can be deeply affecting, with just a
> > little bit of self-awareness to keep the irony at
> > bay.
> > 
> > The music itself is not overly imaginative, though
> > very well done:  an adreneline-driven heartbeat
> > pumping life into bloodied corpses of sour
> > relationships and cities that won't let you leave.
> 
> > I
> > think I've mentioned "All on Black" here before,
> my
> > fave from this one: also love "Fatally Yours" with
> > the
> > memorable lines, "You crashed your car through my
> > front door/I pulled you from the wreckage/You told
> > me
> > that you missed me/ but you meant with the grill
> and
> > hood."  Apparently, as I work my way through the
> > back
> > catalog, this is just refined essence of what
> > they've
> > been doing since '97 - the one prior cd has a song
> > called "Dying Tomorrow" that is actually a last
> > checklist of things he hopes he's done with his
> > life,
> > and jubilant as hell, for a song about dying.  I
> saw
> > these guys at an outdoor festival here in chicago,
> > their nominal hometown (they live in Cali now, i
> > believe) and befitting emissaries from the
> > netherworld, the following was devoted, cult-like,
> > raucous and young young young; the band apologized
> > for
> > it not being an all ages show and dedicated it to
> > everyone "who was at the Fireside shows, man!"
> > meaning
> > the popular all-ages venue, mostly punk, in town. 
> > Despite the obvious troubles Matt was having with
> > his
> > voice, the show was exhilarating, and well worth
> > voiding my self-imposed Outdoor Festival
> moratorium,
> > and in general made me think it would do this body
> > good to get out and rock amongst the 18 year olds
> > more
> > often.
> > 
> > anyway, just some musings from my year-in-pop,
> which
> > was pretty woeful, i must admit.  but if you're
> > looking for something catchy to whistle on your
> way
> > past the graveyard, you could do much worse than
> > this
> > hemlock-flavored bubblegum punk - go on, try it. 
> > Life
> > is short.
> > 
> > --kelly
> > 
> > =====
> > arma non servant modum
> > 
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