Monday, June 21, 2004
June 20: Good Charlotte - The Young and the Hopeless
Why do I own this? Another "buy this CD and get 3 free" offer from BMG.
I'm really not sure why Good Charlotte suddenly became everybody's favorite band to hate. Even I quit listening to it after the backlash hit full-force. But listening to it again, I think it's as strong an album as Blink-182's Enema of the State. Nearly every song's a keeper. Now granted, these guys are thieves — "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" rips off Chris Rock's act, "The Anthem" steals a line from Jay-Z, etc. — but they're exceptionally good thieves. "A New Beginning," for instance, sounds like the opening music to a Tim Burton film, and my favorite song, "Say Anything," manages to sound like the Primitive Radio Gods, then James, then the Primitive Radio Gods again, all done by a punk band. And they know the backlash is coming: one song rails against "trust fund kids" who get to say what's punk and what's not, and there's a letter to their fans in the liner notes talking about how they decided to stop fistfighting people who said they weren't punk. Are they punk? Maybe not, but they're not as pop as Simple Plan or dreck like New Found Glory. Plus, a buddy of mine went to high school with the Madden twins, and he said their story's for real, they were poor kids who got in a lot of fights and dressed funny. So this isn't some sort of suburban major-label marketing ploy.
Keep or Sell? Keep. I'm a Good Charlotte fan again, and I'm not afraid to admit it. Wanna fight?
I'm really not sure why Good Charlotte suddenly became everybody's favorite band to hate. Even I quit listening to it after the backlash hit full-force. But listening to it again, I think it's as strong an album as Blink-182's Enema of the State. Nearly every song's a keeper. Now granted, these guys are thieves — "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" rips off Chris Rock's act, "The Anthem" steals a line from Jay-Z, etc. — but they're exceptionally good thieves. "A New Beginning," for instance, sounds like the opening music to a Tim Burton film, and my favorite song, "Say Anything," manages to sound like the Primitive Radio Gods, then James, then the Primitive Radio Gods again, all done by a punk band. And they know the backlash is coming: one song rails against "trust fund kids" who get to say what's punk and what's not, and there's a letter to their fans in the liner notes talking about how they decided to stop fistfighting people who said they weren't punk. Are they punk? Maybe not, but they're not as pop as Simple Plan or dreck like New Found Glory. Plus, a buddy of mine went to high school with the Madden twins, and he said their story's for real, they were poor kids who got in a lot of fights and dressed funny. So this isn't some sort of suburban major-label marketing ploy.
Keep or Sell? Keep. I'm a Good Charlotte fan again, and I'm not afraid to admit it. Wanna fight?
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