I have been able to count on a few facts in my life. The
fact that the sun is still there when I wake up, the fact that I am able to
breathe without thinking about it, and the fact that Motion City Soundtrack
does not disappoint whenever they release an album. Okay, maybe that’s a little
drastic, but it’s not far off from the truth. Motion City Soundtrack has
released some of the best neurotic pop-rock around for the past 10 years, and
2012 is no different. The fifth full-length in the band’s venerable discography
is Go, and album that says a whole
heck of a lot more than its succinct title.
I must admit, at first I wasn’t blown away by Go. The lead single, True Romance
surprised me, as it wasn’t what I expected to hear. I was taken aback by the
airiness of the track. I expected to
hear something along the lines of the dark album closer of My Dinosaur Life, “The
Weakends”, something with brooding power but just a touch of optimism. I was
greeted instead with an album full of looks at our own mortality. “Everyone Will
Die” for example is a tender ballad about spending the time you have on Earth
doing something worthwhile. “Everyone will die, and everyone will lose, so what’re
gonna do in the moments before it’s you?” Justin Pierre asks on the track, one
of Go’s standouts. The track features
beautiful string arrangements in the building interlude. It may well be one of
the most beautiful tracks written in the band’s career.
Some critics have said that the album is the band’s natural
progression from Even If It Kills Me.
Excuse me for being frank here, but I absolutely could not disagree more with
that statement. While the album isn’t as rock oriented as Commit This To Memory or as dark as some points on My Dinosaur Life doesn’t mean it has to
fit in with the sugary Weezer-ish sound of Even
If It Kills Me (worst description ever- deal with it.) This album is its
own entity and I don’t really think it has a comparable album in the band’s
discography. After all on what other Motion City Soundtrack album would the
dance-y beat on “Boxelder” fit in?
“The Worst is Yet to Come”
sounds as if Motion City Soundtrack has channeled former tour mates
Saves The Day in the instrumentation, and Pierre turns in one of his best vocal
performances wailing “I promise I’ll behave, only in the worst way,” just as
the band kicks in for the final chorus. The best track on the album, though, is
“Timelines”, the second single released. With its instantly catchy chorus and
lyrics that will be on teenagers facebook pages everywhere within months, it
sure to be a staple in many a summer playlist.
Surface listens don’t do Go
nearly enough justice. This is an album that demands to be dissected, demands
to be listened to with an ear for the intricate details. It is, by all
accounts, an absolute grower of an album. It may not be the most accessible of
the bands work in terms of out of the gate enjoyment, but it stacks up well against
the very best that Motion City Soundtrack has to offer once it is given a shot.
Bottom Line: Those willing to put in the work to really will
be rewarded with some of Justin Pierre’s best songwriting. Like I said, Motion
City Soundtrack never disappoints.
Recommended if you Rock: I
Am The Movie, Commit This To Memory,
Even if It Kills Me, My Dinosaur Life
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