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www.churchonthursday.com
Rise Against
The Unraveling
Fat Wreck Chords
2001
It's rare that "featuring former members of..."
bands match par with their predacessors--
think
Damn Yankees, any incarnation of Black Sabbath after Ozzy left, or H.S.A.S.
However, Chicago's Rise Against (featuring former members of 88 Fingers Louie)
are one exception, crafting a new-school version of old-school posi-core ala
Dag Nasty and Uniform Choice that has me asking "88 Fingers Who?"
The Unraveling smacks of the best the early-to-mid 80's positive hardcore movement had to offer: oversimplified yet inspired lyrics about such vague concerns as "struggle" and "change", pit-ready tempos, and--of course--vocals that somehow manage to sound melodic even though the singer is sceaming his instestines out.
I'm happy that Rise Against wasn't relegated to Honest Don's and got the full Fat Wreck treatment instead. This isn't the most original album I've ever heard, but it is one of the best I've heard from a punk label in quite some time. It's got plenty of straight-ahead Bad Religion meets Gorilla Biscuits-style punk that will probably sound totally unique to the latest wave of 13 year old bad-ass punk kids. Even old bastards like me will be tapping their feet more than Ichiro Suzuki. What the hell else do you need to know?
--Felix Thursday