Customer Reviews

Thirteen Day Getaway [Vinyl]

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

 

 

Thirteen Day Vaction is complete JUNK. It is the worst possible kind of pop-punk. Sappy, ridiculous lyrics with a bland and over-produced sound. This album is no different than anything Good Charlotte has put out. There is no edge or grit present at any level.

It is mind boggling to me that this could be the same band that put out Set Your Goals. It's more than apparent that CIV was shooting for mainstream acceptance, but why fall so far from the tree? Couldn't there have been some sort of middle ground? Songs like "Big Girl" and "Secondhand Superstar" are gag worthy! But really, those two songs alone can't sum up the overall wretched vibe Thirteen Day Vacation gives.

It's really sad that a band with so much potential had to go out with a sissy-rock album like this.

....

... disappointment I felt ...[about] "Thirteen Day Getaway" by Civ. .... Civ's first record "Set Your Goals" was an amazing piece of punk rock. It was a big departure from the Gorilla Biscuits sound (which some fans were ok with, and others were not) and ended up going on to sell 1 million copies in the U.S. with the help of the single "Can't Wait One Minute More" featuring Lou from Sick of it All and a MTV video featuring a bevy of New York Hardcore legends.

Atlantic based on this success felt that the band might be ready to take Civ to "the next level" and suggested the band might want to broaden their sound to sell more records. The idea was tossed around the band, and then finally agreed upon. In my opinion the new sound is [not good] ... It can be described as this sort of 60's rock/punk rock hybrid that misfires again and again, complete with hoakey lyrics and moog organs.

"Haven't Been Myself in Awhile" and "Itchycoo Park" are particularily grating ... What happened to the band I love?!!" Civ finally gets back to old form with "Owners Manual", but by then the damage has been done and you really don't care anymore. The song "Little Men" written by Walter of Quicksand is the only other decent moment on this CD.

In the end Civ gambled. He gambled that the bands new sound (and apperance at the MTV Beach House in '98) would earn the band enough new fans to not have to worry about alienating the old ones. Unfortunetly Civ was wrong and rolled snake eyes with his big fuzzy dice from the "Set Your Goals" album cover instead of 7 or 11. Civ has since broken up ... and Civ now runs a tattoo palor in New York City probably thinking about what he would do differently if he could do it again. They have simply become an Atlantic write off. ....

....Hopefully Civ will come back to the stage again soon and leave this travesty of a record where it belongs, the past.

I first listened to Civ when he was the lead singer of the hardcore band Gorilla Biscuts. They were arguably one of the best hardcore bands ever. Then CIV formed. The first album "Set your goals," though toned down, was a great album. With inspirational lyrics reminiscent of his hardcore days. I started to become concerned when they put a video on MTV. My fears were heightened when I heard they became a house band for some stupid MTV spring break show. This is not to say that a band playing on MTV is a sellout. But in most cases the you'll find their music changes to accomodate the pop MTV crowd. This the path that CIV took. The music can best be described as pop punk. With easy listening guitar riffs and a new melodic, light hearted singing voice (and lyrics) to go with it. Try their debut album if you like good punk music

If you, like me, stumbled upon this album because you enjoyed "Set Your Goals" and were looking for more CIV, don't bother with this one. Although CIV really is the definition of a one-hit wonder ("Can't Wait One Minute More"), the whole "Set Your Goals" album was surprisingly good, it was a great mix of Punk, Ska, and Hardcore rolled into one. They really laid an egg with "Thirteen Day Getaway" though. The first few tracks are pretty good, but the album goes down hill quick. It is not bad enough for 1 star, because it is at least listenable, and I reserve that rating only for that which is unlistenable...2 stars is an adequate rating. FYI, my copy is now sitting at the local CD exchage store because it just wasn't good enough for me to bother pulling out and listening to for only two or three songs once in a great while. It is probably in their "3 for $5" bin.

Follow-up record to SET YOUR GOALS (which was incredible) which falls completely flat. This is straight pop music and after the Set Your Goals album, this was highly disappointing. Sure, there are some catchy jams and I bet they figured they would hit it big and could make a little cash but that didn't quite work out... but they still managed to make some bucks by re-uniting to do a Gorilla Biscuits reunion in which they were driven around in a fancy tour bus fit for Van Halen sipping on fine wine... actually, I think I may respect them more for doing something "different" with this crappy album than I do for that silly tour Gorilla Biscuits embarked upon last year. Too bad this crappy music didn't take them to that kind of level.

This album is great. It's POP Punk, but its fun to listen to and makes you wanna have a good day. In light of all the emo crap thats out there, this album is the counter to emo. Its happy, well done, and enjoyable.

This CD will definately get stuck in your head. It's catchy tune and lyrics will have you listening to each song over and over, but it's a little too "hard core" and some of the songs just suck. (Check out #2-- it's the best one!)

This CD has been criticized over and over by old fans, saying the sound's just not how it used to be. If you like hardcore music, music with no tune, or screaming with random guitar riffs, this change is a bad thing. But listening to this type of music has always bored me and made me want to fall asleep. I find CIV's new sound much more interesting and far easier to listen to over and over. Now, you don't have to be a wimp and like listening to typical mindless pop to like this CD, either. It's basically good punky alt-rock. The best track you can't listen to on amazon.com? My call is track 13, Little Men. It's a somewhat eerie acoustic song with a tune that could stick in your head for days, and lyrics that keep you from feeling embarrassed that you actually like an acoustic song. It's just perfect.

I will admit to having never heard a song off of this album. Set Your Goals was just plain awesome. I saw the band on the warped tour the summer of 98 when this album came out, and they didn't play a single song off of 13 days. It seemed like a pretty good sign that the record was garbage.

This CD is just as rocking as the first one, but is a bit more musical. It's an excellent punk album, so buy it today.