Forget What You Know [Extra tracks, Import]

Midtown | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 12, 2004)
• Original Release Date: 2004
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Extra tracks, Import
• Label: Sony Japan
• ASIN: B00024ZB9Y
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,294,971 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Armageddon, Motherf**kers

2. To Our Savior

3. Give It Up

4. Is It Me? Is It True?

5. God Is Dead

6. Whole New World

7. Empty Like the Ocean

8. Nothing Is Ever What It Seems

9. The Tragedy of the Human Condition

10. Waiting for the News

11. Until It Kills

12. Hey Baby, Don't You Know That We're All Whores

13. Help Me Sleep

14. Manhattan

15. So Long as We Keep Our Bodies Numb We're Safe

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Forget What You Know, February 28, 2005

By 

Anton (Mahwah, NJ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Forget What You Know (Audio CD)

First off, let me say that I love Midtown. They are my favorite band. Don't stop reading this review now because you think that I'm going to give it a great review just because I love the band. I won't. I did not like Living Well is the Best Revenge and I would give that about a 3.5/5 because it was subpar. Forget What You Know, however, most definitely earns a 5 star rating. Hopefully, I have established some sort of credibility as a non-biased reviewer and you will give this critique a good viewing.

Let's start with the obvious: it sounds different. Get over it. No longer is Midtown playing for the pop-punk crowd, they have matured and created a sound that is different than most other bands garnering success today. You may have read other reviews on this website or other sites claiming Midtown sold out on this record; this is not true. They recorded the music that they wanted to record with their own money without any label backing them. This CD is the CD Midtown wanted to make and they did it so how anyone can claim that they sold out is ridiculous. Even more ridiculous would be giving them a one star review off of their own ignorance than by basing it off the music.

Back to my review, this CD earns a perfect rating because it is exactly the thing that I have come to expect from Midtown: great music with great hooks and great lyrics without sounding cheesy and redundant. It starts off the brooding intro of "Armageddon" and then leads directly into a headbanging "To Our Savior." This is the listener's first glance at Midtown: Reborn. No longer are they singing about heartbreak from girls...you can feel Gabe Saporta's heartbreak with life. It's so hard to believe what you're looking for in life. This theme of being disillusioned with life carries through the entire album nearly flawlessly.

"Give it Up" is the next track which was the first to adorn the radiowaves. Not hard to believe when you hear how catchy it is. "Is it Me, Is it True?" follows, declaring lyrics like "Sex is old, old and boring, when you're feeling nothing." It's easy to see how people can be turned off by this CD but if you give it a chance and listen to it for what it is, you will learn just how incredible it is.

"Whole New World" and "Nothing's Ever What it Seems" are both good songs that will keep you tapping your foot while also provoking thought. "Empty Like the Ocean," the second single which has not yet been released, is probably the best song on the CD, though it is not my favorite. It's completely different than anything I've ever heard and it's a phenomenal track. Listen to it and you will see.

"Waiting for the News" is the slow song on the album which, a rarity for slower songs, is one of the strongest tracks on Forget What You Know. 'Even though we sleep together, we're alone.' Yes, it's about a girl, but about a girl in a different way than 'A girl broke up with me and I'm sad.' This song puts Midtown in a completely different league than their peers.

"Until it Kills" is a moderately-paced song that is more upbeat but in all honesty, I believe that this is the worst song on Forget What You Know. There, I said it as a Midtown fan. It's a good song but all of the other songs are better. "Hey Baby, Don't You Know That We're All Whores?" comes next and while can be seen as a joke song from the title, it's not. Listen to the lyrics; you're a whore and I'm a whore.

"Help Me Sleep" is probably my favorite song on the album lyrically. 'The more I learn, the less I know' is one of the greatest lines on the album because it's extremely true. If you think about it, it's just about being bogged down with so much in life that you think you know something but you really don't know anything. "Manhattan" is a slow track that ticks into an explosion of awesomeness. It's about how Gabe can't believe how he's living his life and how he feels lost.

"So Long as We Keep Our Bodies Numb, We're Safe" is my favorite Midtown song ever. This song contains every element of what I love about Midtown. The lyrics ('Every time you swallow do you get a taste of what you've become?'), the rocking pace, the tri-vocal harmonies...it's an incredible track that people say is most reminiscent of Midtown's past music.

Forget What You Know is my favorite album from 2004 for good reason. This is Midtown's best work. They did not sell out, they refined their sound into something that they wanted with amazing results. Buy this album now and give it a good listen before making any ignorant judgments.

5/5

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The class of 2004, February 8, 2005

By 

Ben "music appreciator" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Forget What You Know (Audio CD)

Forget What You Know is the best album of 2004. Midtown shreds its emo-punk roots and instead charges forward with heart-wrenching lyrics and and even more tremendous musicianship.

Midtown's bio mentions FWYK: "The songs, they all deal with the same things: The dissolution of the lines of reality, our abstraction from meaning, searching for it in the wrong places, filling empty spaces with things, garbage." It's hard to say it any better. It's unfortunate that this album will never get the acclaim it deserves because it's easily the best of 2004. Outstanding in every way.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ignore these tasteless people below., January 27, 2005

By 

Clarky (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Forget What You Know (Audio CD)

Midtown's Forget What You Know is one of the most ambitious records of the year. The members of the band paid for the recording out of their own pockets, with Butch Walker producing. Columbia ended up signing them and releasing it. In my opinion, this is the record of the year...and here's why...
1.Armageddon An intro that leads into the next track with a chant.
2.To Our Savior (5/5) Awesome first song of the album. Fast-paced and catchy.
3.Give It Up (5/5) The album's first single. It's very Police-influenced and catchy as hell.
4.Is It Me? Is It True? (4.5/5) This is the track you would never find on their past releases. Good depressing rock tune.
5.God Is Dead intermission track. Piano leads you into the next track.
6.Whole New World (5/5) Other vocalists step in more than Gabe. Slow, smooth rock song. It's excellent. "Save yourself, there's no salvation." Pessimistic.
7.Empty Like The Ocean (5/5) Probably the strongest track on the album. Rocks harder than most Midtown songs.
8.Nothing Is Ever What It Seems (4.5/5) Another rock song. Slower verses with explosive choruses.
9.Tragedy Of Human Condition Last intermission track of the album. Starts off Waiting for the News
10.Waiting For The News (5/5) Catchy pop rock song. Mellow track with an awesome chorus.
11.Until It Kills (4.5/5) Slower song. Clean (for the most part) and catchy.
12.Hey Baby, Don't You Know That We're All Wh*res (4.5/5) Fast-paced rock track gets the cd's speed going again. Very Foo Fighters-ish.
13.Help Me Sleep (4.5/5) Smooth verses with a heavy explosive chorus. Awesome song about insomnia.
14.Manhattan (4/5) Song I enjoy the least...Slow soft ballad song...very depressing. Explodes at the end.
15.So Long As We Keep Our Bodies Numb We're Safe (5/5) Reminiscent of older Midtown songs. Catchy and fast-paced. Has a bridge that repeats over and over again for about 12 minutes, yet I never get sick of it.
Go pick this album up if you haven't and you enjoy the following bands: Foo Fighters, Autopilot Off, Northstar, Saves The Day.