LESS THAN JAKE / B is for B-sides (2004)

Over the years, Vinnie has contented himself with writing song after song about leaving town. In retrospect, it was the juvenile coping strategy of someone convinced that a change of scenery could fix everything wrong in their life. With this b-side collection (of all things), he seems to have realized that true change comes as a result of not running away from the one thing you cannot escape: yourself. While there is an obligatory leaving song, this effort instead skews heavily to salvos about facing oneself while in the throes of substance abuse. Along the way you’ll realize that while he hasn’t reached a final answer in any narrative sense, he has talked a big enough game of resolve to make this their most impressive effort to date. As a band, they even manage to deliver a few songs in their best template of old: socially conscious meta-musings with hooks galore.  B is for Bravo.

Songs of Note: Bridge and Tunnel Authority; National Anthem

3½ Face-down breakdowns out of 5

Nutted by (N is for) NEG

FALL OUT BOY/ Folie à Deux (2008)

"You can only blame your problems on the world for so long,
before it all becomes the same old song."

I have a dirty little secret. I always skip about half of the songs on this album. To be frank, there isn’t a 100% perfect Fall Out Boy album (There's a couple, now, dumbass --2023 Neg). I said it. Now, deal with it. Patrick used to rummage through Pete’s bile diaries and pull out bits and pieces that were sharp enough to slice your wrists and your ex-girlfriends' hearts. He shot them like arrows to heaven with his soaring voice and (as their career went on) glistening production. Here, a slight majority of the time, he manages to make Pete’s best musings about adultery, rampant dark-pride, smug drug use, and even regret into gloriously funky anthems and self-reflective ballads. The best we could expect from them came at the end, in their usual slap-dash manner. Come back, guys, we need your messy imperfection to keep us sane.

Songs of Note: Disloyal Order of Water Buffaloes; 20 Dollar Nose Bleed

3 Falsely Confident Electric Preachers out of 5

Nutted by NEG

MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE / Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys (2010)

This isn’t a concept album. It’s barely cohesive at all. Shit isn’t even very consistent. Whole lot of reckless abandon, dash of the mushy crap, little bit of 80s flair, and even some pure nonsense. Fuck, they left off the best song from these recording sessions. This is a goddamn mess of an album from a band that’s usually very consistent and inspiring. But.....why do I listen to it so much? Because sometimes you just have to shake your ass and bang your head, even if it doesn’t make much sense. Every album doesn't need to be The Black Parade. Stop expecting the world; start living a life others want to be a part of and will remember fondly.

Songs of Note: Bulletproof Heart; Save Yourself, I'll Hold Them Back

2 Hollow-point smiles out of 5

Nutted by NEG

SAY ANYTHING / Anarchy, My Dear [2012]

You know you’re in for trouble when the biggest, darkest misogynist you know is “happily” married. Is Max going to regret having Sherri guest on so many songs, live, and on this album? Probably. Her songs are easily the most awkward to listen to, but he still manages to talk shit about himself and other guys in the process. The best to be found herein comes on songs written about her--in her absence--and a jilted, wonky, almost honky-tonk send-up to the chaos in the universe. Oh, he attempts to make it about her, but it’s abundantly clear he’s finally come to grips with his own insane inconsistency and how it’s all a part of this gloriously complex mess of a cosmos we inhabit. A (mostly) comfortable, respectable (enough) effort.

2½ fetishized sheep out of 5

Songs of Note: Of Steel; Anarchy, My Dear

Nutted by NEG

THE KILLERS - Sam's Town [2006]

Brandon Flowers cannot control what comes out of his gloriously bitchy mouth. This is for the best, because between the cattiness and bravado a grandiose, yet justified, maelstrom of nostalgia, melancholy, regret, and resolve effortlessly escapes, reminding us just how talented the little cunt is. He walks us along emotional avenues we scarcely visit and have been avoiding for longer than we could have ever imagined. Truly a masterful sophomore album from a band who previously delivered an inconsistent, if interesting, effort that alternated between bursts of cheekiness and premature sketches of what was to come. Don’t be afraid to be swept away into a sea of bitter-sweet tears. Brandon et al. aren’t satisfied with leaving you adrift. You’re brought back to shore and lifted up before you’re sent on your way.

 5 Needlessly Counted Days out of 5

Songs Of Note: This River Is Wild; Why Do I Keep Counting?

Nutted by NEG