Customer Reviews

Rock Against Bush, Vol. 1

5 star:		(49)
4 star:		(29)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(27)

 

 

This is a really really good album. Im saying that to the people who may be turned off by its political leanings. People, this isnt just some Bush-hatefest put to music, not at all. Most of these songs have a message of some kind, some more vauge than others, but for the most part its pretty soft. And above all else the music just plain rocks. There isnt a bad track on this compilation. They all sound great, and with 26 different bands you can listen to it again and again and not get bored with it. Its awesome. Now to breakdown the tracks:

1. None More Black - Nothing To Do When Your Caught in a Vacancy: 8/10 Pay no attnetion to the titles of half of these tracks, most of them have little to do with the lyrics.
2. Sum 41 - Moron: 7/10 Ive always been a little turned off to Sum 41 because they are so mainstream, but they earn points for a good effort here.
3. Alkaline Trio - Warbrain: 9/10 Great song. These guys have great sound and good vocals.
4. Epoxies - Need More Time: 9/10 I really like this song, but its not your run-of-the-mill punk track at all, so some people might not care for it. Its got keyboards and a steady syth line throughout thats kind of 80s/new wave sounding, but its got fast beat and great vocals (female singer) and good lyrics too.
5. Anti-Flag - The School of Assassins: 9/10 This song rocks. Great lyrics, great backup and beat. The clips they play between verses are kind of weird though.
6. Against Me! - Sink, Florida, Sink (Electric): 8/10 Good song.
7. The Offspring - Baghdad: 9/10 I usually dont care for Offspring because they are such sellouts, but they score big points for contributing to this CD, and the song they play is badass so Ive gotta give it to em.
8. The Get Up Kids - Lion and the Lamb: 8/10 Kind of slow but good beat, good vocals, and good piano that make for a great sound.
9. Rise Against - Give It All: 7/10
10. Ministry - No W: 8/10 The vocals are kind of crappy, but the soundbites from Dubya make this song fun to listen to, and the music rocks.
11. Descendents - Sad State of Affairs: 9/10 Love the Descendents. They give a great effort in this song, though the lyrics arent anything to write home about.
12. Authority Zero - Revolution: 8/10 Great song, good lyrics, and rockin sound.
13. The Soviettes: Paranoia! Cha-Cha-Cha: 9/10 Kind of pop sounding, but thats just because the girls that sing sound so much like Save Ferris (only without the horns). Also really catchy and fun.
14. Jello Biafra with DOA - Thats Progress: 10/10 Im a sucker for Jello so the rating is kind of biased, but its great to hear him with a great band like DOA. Great lyrics, which is to be expected and though DOA arent DK they do a good enough job to compliment Jello's vocals and energy.
15. RX Bandits - Overcome (The Recapitulation) 7/10: Is that Sublime? No, but it sure sounds like it. This is the longest song on the album, it starts out slow sounding like reggae but it picks up and gets better. Good lyrics.

16. Strung Out - No Voice of Mine 8/10 Good lyrics.
17. Strike Anywhere - To the World: 9/10 Fast, angry, and hardcore sound with great lyrics.
18. The Ataris - Heaven is Falling: 10/10 This is a cover of a Bad Religion song about the first gulf war. I like this cover which says a lot because I usually hate cover songs. But they play is acoustic and slower than the original which sounds really good. And the lead singer of the Ataris has a lot better voice than Greg Graffin thats for sure. Still not as good as the original but a great effort.
19. Pennywise - God Save the USA: 9/10 Ok we all know Pennywise could have used any of their songs on this CD ok, and they all would have fit right in. But the song is still great. Great lyrics.
20. Denali - Normal Days: 11/10 The best track on the CD. Ironic because its the least political of them all but that doesnt matter. Maura Davis has the finest voice I have ever heard. Best vocals ever! Gwen Stefani can eat her dust. To compliment her amazing vocals you have a keyboard line and guitars that mesh together in a way that I just cant describe. Awesome, simply awesome. I get chills just listening to this song.
21. The World/Inferno Friendship Society - The Expatriate Act: 8/10 Good lyrics, great backup. All around good song.
22. New Found Glory - No News is Good News: 7/10 Another band thats too popular so my taste, but still a good effort here.
23. The Frisk - Basket of Snakes: 9/10 Good hardcore sound, fast and angry. Good catchy chorus.
24. NOFX - Jaw, Knee, Music: 7/10 I find this track confusing. NOFX can be as politcal as anybody and make it work, I mean this whole thing was Fat Mike's baby. But they give us this track thats got nothing to say whatsoever. It would be good if it were on one of their other albums and all but for this I expected more. They should have contributed "Idiot Son of an A$$hole" instead.
25. Social Distortion - Its the Law: 9/10 Love Social D. Great song, catchy too
26. Less Than Jake with Billy Bragg - The Brightest Bulb Has Burned Out: 9/10 This should be 10/10 because its LTJ, a great great band playing a great song with good lyrics with their typical ska sound that I know I love, but Billy Bragg's vocals bring it down I think. He's just not that good IMO.

Well thats it, hope this was helpful.

Ok. I'm a community college professor pushing 30 and my punk rock days are long behind me, but I picked this up out of curiosity and it's an interesting listen for 8$ ... Though I wouldn't take all the punk rock piss and vinegar here "religiously", I do think this is a positive and respectable project. Fat Mike used to make some lyrically dumb music in his early career so I never took him super seriously, but now he's bringing together a young sub-culture to positively attempt social change. 4 stars for trying! Good!

*somewhere in the US, government agents are likely analyzing NOFX lyrics to determine their threat to world security... what a funny thought.

I am going to refrain from any of the liberal vs. conservative sniping that some other reviewers seem to enjoy. I agree with the CD's message, but I'm going to rate the songs focusing more on musical merit than on the message conveyed therein. I am also going to refrain from the "Sellout! Sellout!" comments that clutter many of the reviews. So, without further ado, the songs:

1. None More Black-Nothing To Do When You're Locked In A Vacancy: 7.5/10. A good song, nice guitars, but it suffers in comparison with some of the other songs on this album.
2. Sum 41-Moron: 7/10. Nice song about being unable to feel what's going on in the world, but the Descendants do the same thing much better.
3. Alkaline Trio-Warbrain: 11/10. My favorite song of all time. Everything is great: vocals, lyrics, guitar, bass, drums...this song is reason enough to buy the album.
4. Epoxies-Need More Time: 8/10. The vocals are nice, but it loses a point for sounding a bit too techno for my taste.
5. Anti-Flag-The School Of Assassins: 10/10. A really cool song that makes you think, if you care about people in other countries.
6. Against Me!-Sink, Florida, Sink!: 8/10. A very funny song with good vocals and guitar.
7. The Offspring-Baghdad: 10/10. A great song about the cost of war, with nice lyrics and Middle-Eastern sounding instrumentation.
8. The Get Up Kids-Lion And The Lamb: 10/10. Another song about war, this one's incredibly harmonious and melodic.
9. Rise Against-Give It All: 9.5/10. A song about the soldiers who fight our wars that doesn't condemn the war but rather honors the soldiers.
10. Ministry-No W: 8.5/10. Great lyrics, but how much you like this one depends on how much you like heavy metal.
11. Descendants-Sad State Of Affairs: 10/10. An incredible song about how some people just don't care about anything but themselves.
12. Autority Zero-Revolution: 10/10. Great song, great message: "If you want to make a difference, get off your duff and do something about it!"
13. The Soviettes-Paranoia! Cha-Cha-Cha!. 10/10: A really cool song about not being decieved by propaganda, with a great chorus.
14. Jello Biafra with D.O.A.-That's Progress: 10/10. Well, what else would you expect from Jello? The lyrics are the best part of this one.
15. RX Bandits-Overcome: 8.5/10. A strange hybrid of reggae and punk, it starts out kind of weak but gets progressively better.
16. Strung Out-No Voice Of Mine: 10/10. A song about how important it is to think for yourself with some really great hooks and amazing vocals.
17. Strike Anywhere-To The World: 10/10. A great song about how our humanity transcends race, religion or nationality. Great contrast betwen the two singers.
18. The Ataris-Heaven Is Falling: 10/10. The Ataris' sound, Kris Roe's voice, plus a Bad Religion song, and how can it not be incredible?
19. Pennywise-God Save The USA: 10/10. Dark, cynical, angry...perfect! The most violently liberal song on here, so I really like it!
20. Denali-Normal Days: 8.5/10. Really melodic, but also very wierd. My taste runs harder, but still good music.
21. The World/Inferno Friendship Society-The Expatriate Act: 10/10. Best described as poetry set to music, the most literate song on this comp.
22. New Found Glory-No News Is Good News: 9.5/10. A song about how the media tries to control the people through fear. Very melodic.
23. The Frisk-Basket Of Snakes: 8/10. I'm not sure what this has to do with protesting against Bush. Good song, but kind of out of place.
24. NOFX-Jaw, Knee, Music: 10/10. This song opens with a truly killer bass solo. I think it's adout a soldier in the Middle East.
25. Social Distortion-It's The Law: 9/10. A song about our prison system. Great chorus.
26. Less Than Jake featuring Billy Bragg-The Brightest Bulb Has Burned Out: 8.5/10. Another one that doesn't seem to fit. Good song nonetheless.

And there you have it: a great album for a great cause. Overall: 9.5

The DVD alone is worth the cost. David Cross is hilarious plus the documentaries will blow you away. This isn't just youth angst... It's educated and informed information.

I don't typically like comps. but this one has some great variety and some really impressive punk bands.

It doesn't matter whether you are left-wing or right-wing... if you care at all about the future you'll seek out the information provided on this CD and DVD.

buy it.

Everyone reviewing this CD is so hyped up on the concept of Bush that they forgot a key concept: the music! This is a great CD! Its cool that pop/punk and punk/rock can get together and make a CD that's worth buying. I was a little intimidated before buying this, because I never thought I'd see Pennywise and New Found Glory on the same CD, but boy was I wrong. This CD is awesome! I love anything punk -- from The Ramones to Nofx -- so finding a CD with just punk was great for me, and will probably end up being great for you too. The reason why this album is so political is because the label is Fat Wreck Chords, and you know who runs Fat Wreck Chords? None other than Fat Mike from Nofx, who has a very large opinion on Bush. But who cares about that? On to the music! Stand out tracks include songs by Alkaline Trio, Nofx, The Descendents (finally!), Anti-Flag, and Pennywise. It would have been nice to hear something from Bad Religion or Unwritten Law, but its still awesome. But as for Bad Religion, there's an extra DVD that comes with this CD, with music videos from Bad Religion, Anti-Flag, and of course Nofx. Be sure to buy this comp!

Bought this CD for about $10(Canadian) which is a steal, and most of this songs on this CD rock. Good mizture of new and old bands. The Offspring's "new" track, 'Baghdad' on this CD is actually a re-recorded and slightly re-worded track from the early 90's called 'Tehran' written during the 1st Gulf war. Scary that it is still relevant today, but still a great song none the less.

Funny how all the right-wing Bush nuts are saying people who listen to this CD are ignorant. Being a Canadian, I'm glad this compilation was put together, here's hoping that you guys can vote out Bush in November, and help make the world a better place.

Everyone knows music compilation CDs are lower, smaller beasts than single-artist albums. The assembly of any collection is always a mixed bag, with no thread to tie the weaker elements to the stronger ones. Strangely, though, of the compilations I've heard, the ones where punks get political - and this is one of the best I've heard since 1996's amazing Home Alive: The art of self-defense. there are weaker tracks, but they are hard to find, and due to the overwhelming message of the album, they are in fact tied in pretty well to the stronger efforts.

I picked this up mostly as a Ministry fan, with a healthy appreciation for Bad Religion and the Get-up Kids. But so much of this album is great to listen to - it's really solid rock! It's a source of prde blasting out of my open windows on the roads this summer. It will be heard by this town, make no mistake! A lot.

But the greatest part of buying this CD was the included DVD, with an agitprop piece about the war called Uncovered, a fantastic piece of the amazing David Cross ripping a new hole for the Commandeer. a great collection of music videos - including B.R. and NOFX. The negative reviews here indicate the album's success as punk rock - it's pissing people off. And for $10, it's a damn bargain, kids. "We're fighting evil!"

Punk is about being progressive, its about helping other people. And also about knocking the crap out of each other at shows, but its fun, with no malice intent. Haha, if Joey Ramone said that the best punk would be conservative, where is the Rock For Bush Compilation. There isn't one so f-off. If Bush/Cheney and Johnny Ashcroft there wouldn't be any shows to know the crap of each other at. So consider that when voting you conservative pricks.

Inside the cover of this CD there is the line that describes it perfectly. To paraphrase, it says that this CD isn't about who's more punk or who's a sellout. Its about uniting for November so we don't get stuck with Dubya for another four years. Its about uniting for a common cause of human decency. So yes, NFG and Sum 41 are on it. And Good Charlotte and Green Day are going to be on Vol 2. Its amazing to me that some people can't put down this "punk" argument for 6 months. Haha, I promise you can bash the sell outs later. Cross my heart.

But as far as the CD goes, here's a rundown of the top ten high points musically:
1. "War Brain" By Alkaline Trio- This song is simply amazing, I might even go as far to make this one of the best Alkaline Trio songs ever.

2. "Heaven Is Falling" By The Ataris - This is a wonderful cover of the Bad Religion classic. Bad Religion is my favorite of all time, and the Kris and the gang treat it with acoustic respect.

3. "Paranoia Cha-Cha-Cha" By the Soviettes - This girls and a guy are amazing. They rage a musical assault. I had never heard the Soviettes, and they are good enough to make it to number 3 for simply being amazing on the first take.

4. "Sad State of Affairs" By the Descendents - Simply brilliant, the melodic vocals almost make you feel catatonic. Nicely done by Milo and crew.

5. "No Voice of Mine" By Strung Out - Classic Strung Out, Like twisted by design Strung Out. So good.

6. "Jaw, Knee, Music" By NOFX - As a bass player, when Fat mike cut in in the first 30 seconds, I almost crapped my pants. Its insanely complicated, and really fast with witty lyrics. It didn't' lose momentum at all. If "Dinosaurs Will Die" and "Bob" were to have a bastard child, this song would be it.

7. "School of Assassins" by Anti-Flag - I was disappointed by this song. It feels like it was a B-side reject from The Terror State. It got this high on the list simply because the bridge is awesome.

8. "Brightest Bulb Has Burned Out" by Less Than Jake - I didn't like the original version of this song, but it sounds SO much better acoustic. And when Billy Bragg cuts in the middle, it's amazing.

9. "Give It All" By Rise Against - Good Song.

10. "Revolution" By Authority Zero - This is the best none original track on here. All the others are original. But this is a good song by Authority Zero.

It's pretty funny reading reviews of this CD, almost all reference this as an "anti-bush" CD. While I'll agree that most of these songs have a political theme to them, there are almost none that directly attack Mr. Bush. These songs attack his administration's policies, which is a completely different method. As opposed to ad hominem attacks, they convey a feeling of helplessness in our society. Before I review the music, it is pretty funny reading the word "ignorant" used to describe the bands, at least two singers (Milo from the Descendents and Brian Holland from The Offspring) have PhD's, and with Jello Biafra, Fat Mike and Mike Ness, you have more incredibly intelligent people. Just because someone doesn't agree with you, doesn't mean they are "ignorant".

Now onto the music, I would have made some different choices in terms of songs, but in general every song has its place. I would have liked to hear a Bad Religion song (Heaven is Falling is a BR song, but Kris Roe isn't Greg Graffin), and Strung Out's song "Mind of my Own" wouldn't have been a bad addition instead of "No Voice of Mine", but that's minor stuff. I'm impressed with songs by Sum 41 and Ministry, certainly not high on my list of great bands, but I have a lot more respect for them now. The addition of Denali was a great choice, unfortunately they recently broke up, but the exposure should get people listening to them, and the Descendents still sound great. It's nice hearing Baghdad (the original version of Tehran) by the Offspring, and Social D is always great.

I think this CD really helps show the potential of the American dream. You have bands that have some personal problems between them (Offspring & Pennywise for example), but they came together for a common cause. Many different record labels contributed songs, and it all worked out. In a country where less than 40% of eligible voters actually vote, anything that gets people thinking about issues is OK in my book.

First of all, I think I should say that when I don't think I've ever bought a compilation (this one included) on which I've liked all, or even two-thirds, of the songs on it. That said, music-wise, this is a pretty good comp in my opinion; there are some great tracks, a lot of decent-good tracks, and some crappy tracks. Anti-Flag, Rise Against, Jello w/ Doa, Strike Anywhere, Pennywise, and NOFX turn in great work here, but a surprise to me was Sum-41's offering. At first I was put off by their presence on this CD, but gave the song a chance, and I have to say it's a lot better than anything else I've heard by them.

Politically, I definitely agree with the album's message. I don't think this album was made to promote these bands as trendy Bush-bashers, but to deliver a serious political message. I say this because, if you've heard and read enough about some of what Bush has done, I don't think it's fair to dismiss anyone (unless you know him/her personally) as a bandwagon Bush-basher. I mean, personally it is my conviction that Bush deserves to spend the rest of his life behind bars. He sent us to war- costing the lives of hundreds of American troops, and thousands of Iraqi civillians- based on lies. And our tax dollars pay his salary! The info included with this CD proves that apathy is deadly.

Speaking of the info, I found the DVD extra alone to be well worth the cost of the album. The three documentary trailers contained some powerful, damning information about Dubya, his administration, and his rich buddies. The 40 reasons to hate Bush listed in the booklet was also informative. Back to the DVD, I found David Cross's standup act to be very funny; also the four music videos were pretty good.