Punk Goes 90s

Punk Goes... (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 9, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Fearless Records
• ASIN: B000F3AAY8
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #54,457 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

The fifth installment in this series includes cover versions of hit songs that today's fans grew up with, such as Soundgarden's "Blackhole Sun", Oasis's "Wonderwall", Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Under The Bridge", REM's "Losing My Religion", and much more. Contributing artists include Plain White Ts, Gym Class Heroes, The Killing Moon, Hit The Lights, Eighteen Visions, and Emery, to name a few. This series is one of the most highly anticipated in the market and prior volumes have scanned 250,000 units and featured bands like Yellowcard, The Ataris, Thrice, Thursday, A New Found Glory, and Taking Back Sunday.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Trying to Breathe Life into that Dead, Beaten Horse, May 18, 2006

By 

indie01 (WI, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Punk Goes 90s (Audio CD)

Fearless records trys to make more money with their "punk goes..." compilation series. These compilations always sound good on paper, but end up short of promise. Same with this cd. First of all, maybe it should be "current indie rock goes..." since many bands I don't consider punk. Semantics aside, there are some shining stars (the biggest one being Anberlin's "Enjoy the Silence"), but many bands fail to deliver. Here's a track by track breakdown:

1)Mae - March of the Pigs (NIN): I'm a big fan of Mae, just not digging their take on the song at all 1/5

2) Plain White T's - Song 2 (Blur): Basically the same song, which isn't a bad thing. The original song rules, the new version offers nothing new so that's why its 3/5

3) Gym Class Heroes - Under the Bridge (Red Hot Chili Peppers): Funky, hip-hop esque reworking of the classic song. It's pretty good and remains loyal to the original (besides changing the "city of angels" to the "big rotten apple") 3/5

4) Copeland - Black Hole Sun (Soundgarden): Great song, faithful to the original, but like the PWT's song, it's too much the original to warrant a recording. Lead singer does a good job though replacing Chris Cornell's vocals. Those are big shoes to fill 3/5

5) Hit the Lights - Hey Jealousy (Gin Blossoms): Think of your typical pop/punk band doing the cover and I bet you can hear this song in your head without ever hearing it. Points for faithfulness, but still being a little different (even though very typical pop/punk) 3/5

6) Emery - All I Want (Toad the Wet Sprocket): Great reworking of the mini hit. Song is still boring after all these years though... 3/5

7) Scary Kids Scaring Kids - Losing my Religion (REM): This song is a great cover. It's faithful, yet full of rocking energy and just different enough from the original. It mixes some synth emo with screaming to deliver the first great song of the album 5/5

8) Cartel - Wonderwall (Oasis): This song is a classic for me. I don't know how anyone could not cover this song well, but it happened. I have no issues with Cartel either. I've liked some of what they've done. This just isn't a good cover. I can't put my finger on why, maybe because it tries to hard too rock out and the vocals try to sing a little off beat. Not a fan 2/5

9) The Killing Moon - You Oughtta Know (Alanis Morissette): Ha. This song rocks. Its a ska/punk cover of alanis' big hit and its great. 5/5

10) Bleeding Through - Stars (Hum): The song is a good cover, but the song itself isn't very good. The vocals seem lost in the crunchy guitar 2/5

11) Anberlin - Enjoy the Silence (Depeche Mode): Brilliant reworking of a cult fave. Can Anberlin cover songs or what (ie-love song)? It's good that their own material is even better. This is the best song on the album, bar none 5/5

12) Eighteen Visions - Beautiful People (Marilyn Manson): Faithful cover of the song, but no one can really be as creepy as Marilyn Manson so the song seems a little annoying at times. If you like the original, you like this. I thought the original was ok and same with this cover 3/5

13) The Starting Line - Big Time Sensuality (Bjork) - I've never heard the original, so I have nothing to compare it to. All I know is that TSL are succeeding in their drive to become more and more annoying. When these guys first came out, they were on a drive thru free compilation. I really liked those two songs. They have gotten exponentially worse and covered a song that I don't think most people like in the first place 1/5

14) So They Say - In Bloom (Nirvana): Covering Nirvana, in my opinion, is like covering the Beatles or Led Zeppelin; you just don't do it. So They Say took a big risk covering "In Bloom". The pop/punk voice, the guitar work, the drumming, it all just doesn't stand up. Sorry guys, I'm sure you did a pretty good job on it, but that's what you get for covering a cultural icon. 1/5

15) Bedlight for Blue Eyes - Jumper (Third Eye Blind): Soft, sweet reworking of the 3EB song. One question, does the lead singer want to sound like a former boy band-er at times? Decent close out to a less than decent album 3/5

I love the ideas that Fearless has of releasing a comp of small bands covering well known favorites to get their label and bands some money. I also know it's smart to put in some bigger names (TSL, Anberlin, Mae). The execution just isn't there. So what's next? Punk goes techno? Punk goes Punk? Punk goes Acoustically late eighties pop, early nineties metal? We'll see. 2.5 Stars

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Couple hits, mostly misses NOT PUNK, April 2, 2009

By 

Jeremiah Long "www.TheOversat.com" (Knoxville, TN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Punk Goes 90s (Audio CD)

I don't know what part of this album is supposed to be considered "punk". The bands aren't punk rock bands, the songs aren't punk rock versions.

Ok so there are some popular bands like Cartel, Gym Class Heroes, and Plain White T's but these are not punk bands. I wouldn't even call most of the bands on here post-punk. So let's look beyond the fact that I was sorely disappointed that it wasn't my favorite 90's songs remade by punk bands and talk about what is there.

Cartel's reimagined "Wonderwall" is pretty good, but maybe I just really like that song

Same with Scary Kids... version of "Losing my Religion" I think I just really like this song.

Rest of the songs basically suck, even when they are just straight covers not a reimagining. I mean how do you put a hip-hop group on a "Punk goes" anything? If you want songs off of this album listen and buy the ones you want, don't waste your money on the whole thing.

I got it at Best Buy and FORCED them to take it back even though I'd opened it. I just couldn't let the world exist knowing I'd paid money for this farce.

note to Fearless Records: If you say it's a "Punk goes..." album ya might want to get PUNK bands to cover the songs.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars "Punk?", November 28, 2007

By 

C. Curtis "horror flick chick" (california) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Punk Goes 90s (Audio CD)

I was very disappointed by this CD. First of all, most of the songs that are covered had no business being punk-i-fied in the first place. Second, most of the songs are nearly identical to the originals. Third, some of the songs are so slow, the word "punk" sticks in my throat when I try to say it. The bands had an opportunity to amp up some balladish songs and failed. Here's my opinion on the songs:

1. March of the Pigs: 2/5 Sounds good, similar to NIN, Mae didn't add too much to me.

2. Song 2: 3/5 Why, why, why would they do a punk cover of an already fun, punkish-pop song? Sounds exactly the first, but since the first version is really good, hence the 3 stars.

3. Under The Bridge: 4/5 The more you listen to this cover it is actually good. The Gym Class Heroes add enough to make it different but don't ruin the original amazing song. But punk? Not sure about that.

4. Black Hole Sun: 1/5 Should have stayed in the hole. Is slower than the original with none of the rock sound. Disappointing.

5. Hey Jealousy: 2/5 OK, but sounds a lot like the first one. Hard to do much with an already good song.

6. All I Want: 1/5 Slower (if possible) than the Toad version. Huh?

7. Losing My Religion: 5/5 The album's saving grace. It ROCKS! It's catchy and hardcore, and definitely does not sound like REM. This is the type of song I expected for the rest of the album.

8. Wonderwall: 1/5 Adds a slight kick to the original but not enough.

9. You Oughta Know: 4/5 Again, great song to start with and the Killing Moon does a nice job putting a punk spin on it.

10. Stars: 1/5 A bit better than the 1st, but still kinda boring.

11. Enjoy the Silence: 4/5 the only other song I really liked in its "punk" version. Awesome song to start with, catchy, techno-ish version.

12. Beautiful People: 3/5 3 stars because it's a cool song on its own, but the cover added nothing--not that it should or could have.

13. Big Time Sensuality: Didn't know the 1st one, so it's hard to rate. Not really a fan of this version either.

14. In Bloom: 3/5 Another song that seems strange to include--what more can you do to a song that already rocks? But the cover band did not ruin it, to their credit.

15. Jumper: 2/5 I was hoping for a fast, interesting version. Nope. Step off the ledge.

My advice: do NOT waste your money on this CD. Just download the Scary Kids, Scaring Kids "Losing My Religion" if you're an REM fan. Or, buy the albums with the original songs.