Same Old Blood Rush With a New Touch

Cute Is What We Aim For | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 20, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Fueled By Ramen
• ASIN: B000FFP00A
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #44,382 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

This Buffalo, NY group is best known for their countless hooks, pop sensibility, and witty lyrics. Their debut was produced by Matt Squire (Panic! At The Disco, Thrice, Northstar). Their online presence is unlike anything Fueled By Ramen has ever experienced. They've consistently been in the top ten on purevolume.com for over six months, racking up over 1.6 million plays. Alternative Press named them one of the 100 Bands You Need To Know In 2006.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cute Is What They Are, April 11, 2007

By 

Bradley Jacobson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Same Old Blood Rush With a New Touch (Audio CD)

According to All Music and their critics, Cute Is What We Aim For and their cheekiness is not much to their liking. But what's really strange to me is there was only a measely second of hesitation on my part to like this CD; by the time the ending of the first track "Newport Living" came along, this band had a brand new fan. "You wanted to sell out/ but you couldn't even do that right/ so your price tag has been slashed/ and now you're on a half price clearance rack," umm hello, what a crack up. I love the fact they make fun of everything including themselves, where some critics find that they are perhaps trying to too hard to be clever, I disagree and think they're just funny enough to be clever - "The Fourth Drink Instinct" the story of a girl who gets drunk and screws someone and turns around and is surprised when he leaves her in the morning is great. It's a power rock ballad and perhaps it's toned down in terms of lyrics I can surely relate to it (I know friends like that) (What made you think that he couldn't find the door in the morning/ when he found that bed so easily in the dark?) ; "There's A Class For This" includes lines "drama doesn't follow me/ it rides on my back/ I may be ugly/ but they sure love to stare..." and in "Risque" they give us "Medically speaking you're adorable/and from what I hear/ you're quite affordable..." I love it. Musically, the band is more poppy than Boy Kill Boy and less tragic guitars a la The Smiths, but they aren't quite as experimental and fun as say Wheatus, in fact they sound a lot like a lot of those bands I don't like that out now a days - the dime a door dozen type with the chugging guitars and the high pitced wincy voice, but this time around it has won me over, the music moves in jaunts and rhythmic motions and the vocals are actually giving me a thrill with the witty lyrics - so critics be damned I'm telling you The Same Old Blood Rush With A New Touch is clever and lovable and umm cute.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Catchyyyy, June 20, 2006

By 

J. Davis (Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Same Old Blood Rush With a New Touch (Audio CD)

I didn't think I'd like Cute Is What We Aim For, since I'm a fan of the classics - Beatles, Eric Clapton, Pink Floyd, Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, et cetera. I heard a couple riffs of "There's A Class For This" and thought, "Here we go, more emo pop".

Then I listened to the whole song.

And couldn't get it out of my head for days.

And found that when I listened to it on my way to work, I showed up grinning. So I listened to the rest of the album, and it's more of a good thing. For being so young, this band has some serious talent (and doesn't take themselves so seriously, which is refreshing).

Highly recommend this album to anyone who wants some upbeat, catchy, clever music!

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A novelty, if a cheap one., July 21, 2006

By 

Xavier Sharpe - See all my reviews

This review is from: Same Old Blood Rush With a New Touch (Audio CD)

Cute Is What We Aim For's <em>The Same Old Blood Rush with a New Touch</em> has no qualms over what it is: a light and fluffy (if self-indulgent) romp through merry tunes of crushes and heartbreak, of one night stands and ultimately, girls. <em>The Same Old Blood</em>'s ultimate savior is how often it doesn't take itself seriously, with tunes like the catchy "The Curse of Curves" or the self-aware "There's A Class For This." But when it really takes its time to sit down and ponder the universe ("The Fourth Drink Instinct" will likely become a teen angst favorite), it shines by its own merits, but surrounded by the fluff it is, it seems more a very welcome intrusion than anything else.

The CD starts off with a bang, with lead singer Shaant belting "Everyone's a letdown/it just depends on how far down they can go" in "Newport Living"> It's a biting line, one that rings with a resounding truth that any teen in their high school years can relate to, and the song itself is one of the album's best. The song is followed by the less successful first single "There's A Class For This." It's radio material, for sure, but it's self-indulgent ("Drama doesn't follow me/It rides on my back/I may be ugly but they sure love to stare"). It sure is easy to sing along to, but harder to feel for. It's breezy and fast, and over before you can truly complain about, and ultimately redeems itself before you reach the third number.

"Finger Twist & Split" is the first big mis-step for <em>The Same Old Blood</em>, and while not a big one, I found myself skipping over the song more than once. It's clichéd, and with a band that revels in clichés, CIWWAF seems to have thought this one was clever twist on an age old cinematic issue. It's not. The song is followed up with "Risque" (a personal favorite), with obvious but painfully honest lyrics that get under the skin. It starts over innocently enough, but before picking up with a chorus to be proud of.

"Sweat The Battle Before The Battle Sweats You" (a title Panic! At The Disco would be proud of. Come to think of it, it seems a blatant rip off of the chorus to "Camisado") is poppy and springs out of the speakers with a resounding clap. It's not bad, but it's not great. It's just there, taking up space. And that's not a problem.

"The Fourth Drink Instinct" is where Shaant really stops to slow things down. This is where I'm really stuck on the album. The song is amazing, really. The lyrics are like a sudden slap to the face. They're truthful, they're mature beyond their years, and the chorus begins with such a force of emotion it's amazing to be hold. But ultimately, the song feels out of place among the teen angst, with lyrics about one night stands and drinking. But "Sweet Talk 101" picks up where "Sweat The Battle" left off, and it's sure to make a radio hit (a more fitting one than "There's A Class For This"). The line "The arch in your eyebrow can tell the truth/Just imagine what your back could do" will go down in history as one of the greatest placed instrumental changes in a song, and one of the funnest lines to belt out to. Go ahead and try turning it up when you get to that part.

"The Curse of Curves", the whole reason I fell in love with CIWWAF, is egotistical ("With my combination of my gift with one liners/And my way, my way with words"), and a joy to endulge in. The lyrics are amazingly easy to remember, and it's so enjoyable to sing along to that I'm surprised it wasn't picked to be a single (though I'm holding out for it to be).

"I Put The 'Metro' In Metronome". The only reason I even really remember this song is the pre-chorus: "Your clothes don't fit the season/You're cold and that's the reason." It's a moment of sheer wit, one that seems all too out of place with the song, better suited for well placed hooks and snappier choruses. It's not a bad song by any standards (there's no "bad song" on the whole album), it's just disappointing follow-up to "The Curse Of Curves."

"Lyrical Lies" is a welcome change, based almost soley in acoustic. It's sharp, heartbreak material, with one of the disc's best lines: "You want to be dressed in poetry/But imagery doesn't fit." The song doesn't feel to out of place as "The Fourth Drink Instinct" and fits well in the context of the CD, but "The Fourth Drink Instinct" is still superior in every aspect.

Whoever decided to place "Moan" after "Lyrical Lies" was brilliant, as it starts up as fast as "Lyrical Lies" ends, and is such a quick change of pace in that no lull is ever detected. It's a breather and a rush (fitting to the the song with the line "Swoon this is the same old rush with a new touch"). It's naive but such a guilty pleasure that you can overlook stumbles like "And we all wet our lips to prepare for the kiss/It was but a game" and "So come back/Such a task and this is such a blast."

The album ends with "Teasing To Please (Left Side, Strong Side)", and it's a fitting end. It's not epic ending that some bands try to do, though it does have a harmony fade. It's no big bang, but really, <em>The Same Old Blood</em> has no reason to try to be something it's not (and they were smart to remember that). It's there for those late summer afternoons or laid back nights. It's fast and it's fluffy, but ultimately there is no shame in purchasing it. Just don't expect something revolutionary.

Newport Living (9/10)
There's A Class For This (7/10)
Finger Twist & Split (6/10)
Risque (9/10)
Sweat The Battle Before The Battle Sweats You (7/10)
The Fourth Drink Instinct (10/10)
Sweet Talk 101 (8/10)
The Curse Of Curves (9/10)
I Put The "Metro" In Metronome (6/10)
Lyrical Lies (8/10)
Moan (9/10)
Teasing To Please (Left Side, Strong Side) (8/10)

Recommended.