Customer Reviews

Apathy and Exhaustion

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

fantastic. this album out-does thier previous "ghost stories". the lawrence arms feature a great melodic sound encompassed by vocals thrown between scratchy and snarly to soft and gentle. with superb songwriting and the ability to keep your ears glued to the almost 'alkaline trio-esque' intensity, this album is the lawrence arms' greatest to date.

fantastic. this album out-does thier previous "ghost stories". the lawrence arms feature a great melodic sound encompassed by vocals thrown between scratchy and snarly to soft and gentle. with superb songwriting and the ability to keep your ears glued to the almost 'alkaline trio-esque' intensity, this album is the lawrence arms' greatest to date.

As of late, the "punk rock" scene has been permiated with cookie cutter "pop-punk" bands composed of nineteen year old boys complaining about their love lives. you know who i'm talking about...anyways, it seems to me that every time i turn on the radio, i'm hit with a new "punk" band that sounds just like the last.

in a time like this, it's nice to have a band like the lawrence arms.

with their third release, the lawrence arms have completely outdone themselves. "apathy and exhaustion" totally levels either of their previous two full lengths, and stands out as one of the most exciting records to hit the streets in the last several years.

the lawrence arms are fronted by brendan kelly and chris mccaughn, both of whom are seasoned veterans of the fuming chicago punk rock scene. kelly is the former frontman of slapstick, a short-lived ska favorite, and teamed with mccaughn in fronting the broadways, who before breaking up, resembled a slightly more political lawrence arms. in any case, the two vocalists contrast beautifully on this record. brendan's songs tend to be more charged, while chris' lean more towards the relaxed, intelligent side of the spectrum. their individual vocal stylings and the vivid imagery in their lyrics make "apathy and exhaustion" especially appealing lyrically. listening to songs like "the first eviction notice" or "brickwall views", one can almost feel the icy sting of the chicago air on a bleak december morning. you can almost smell the pungent odor of stale cigarette smoke and cheap beer on your own breath as you sit in a dank project basement. indeed, this is an album that was influenced as much by the enviroment it was written in as it was by the scene it's creators grew up in.

musically, "apathy and exhaustion" is a far cry from the poppy guitar hooks and recycled drum beats we're used to these days. the guitars are powerful, yet not overdriven. the bass is driving, yet reserved, and the drums hold the whole thing thing together (as always).

standout tracks on this record include the single "porno and snuff films" (which was played on mtv2 for a period of time), "the first eviction notice", "your gravest words", "boatless booze cruise part 1", "brickwall views" and "Right As Rain part 2"...but the entire album is fantastic. it comes highly recomended by myself to pretty much anyone who likes anything that has ever been called punk. fans of rancid and fans of blink-182 alike may finally have an album to agree on.

The Lawrence Arms have two other full-length records, but I hadn't heard of them until I learned they were putting their newest out on Fat. Apathy and Exhaustion is a fantastic blast of empassioned fast and melodic punk rock. Themes of disillusion, exhaustion, indifference and feeling burnt out run throughout the album, and the band's two singers (gravelly uber-punky 'Clarence Darrow' and softer 'Lehigh Acres') share vocal duties; Darrow sings the knock down, drag out songs, while Acres takes the slower and more mapped out tunes. It works really well and the approach is similar to the one Propagandhi used on their first two albums. No matter who's singing, the fuzzed out guitars wail, the bass pops along merrily, and the great (cynical, funny, embittered) lyrics all swirl together for a truly staggering brew. Highly recommended! The Arms are one of my new favorite bands.

Best punk album of the year. WHY? Simply because of the great lyrics of the lp, and the great voices that sing with such energy and feeling on this LP that it causes an almost synergistic relationship between the listener and the band. Besides, Brendan went to Northwestern, and as a punk rock at NU i am definitely a fan. But seriously, find me a band that writes more mature lyrics, with better hooks, and a more punk rock sound, and I will eat my copy of the cd. If you love punk rock, buy this cd, it is your moral duty.

This was my first lawrence arms album and i was very impressed on how the two singers could completley change the sound of the band. it's almost like two different bands, Chris is way more emo and mellow but awesome lyrics and angst. Brendan is more punk with more confrontational lyrics and aggressive music. Very cool. It's weird to go from a mellow song to something more upbeat back and forth but it makes it more interesting.

this cd is some great stuff. it builds you up just to rip your tiny little heart out. beautiful arrangements and frankly a pretty damn near perfect record. everyone needs to stop bitching about how the old stuff is better. things change kids. deal.

This has to be by far the best indie album of the year. Every song gets right to the point and completely rocks. The lyrics are nostalgic and inspiring. The album is definately gonna turn a lot of different people on to this style of music. To make a long story short, there isnt a disappointing track on the record. I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys fast paced, hard rock with lyrics they can relate to.

I first heard about The Lawrence Arms a little while back when i was listening to my Fat music volume 6 CD and heard their song the dancing machine. I instantley fell in love with their music. I heard a few more tracks by The lawrence Arms but had serious trouble finding their CD's in stores. So i bought this one and it is awesome. It's a little less fast punk than their compilation songs may seem but very good nonetheless. Not a weak track on the whole CD, Check it out.

Give this album a try, and I think you'll agree: The Lawrence Arms have created a masterpiece. I listene to this record every day, non-stop, for two months, and it is STILL amazing. With melodic, heartfelt melodies accompanied by thrash-your-brains-out beats and brain-twistingly clever rhymes, this is a record not to be missed by any self-respecting lover of true punk rock. It's a steal at twice the price.