Taken from the pages of their CD booklet, Rise Against has this to say: “Real revolution starts at learning. If you’re not angry, then you are not paying attention.” They go on to list recommended reads like “Fahrenheit 451” and “1984” along with and organizations they support like Michael Moore, the king of common sense and morality in my book, who got boo’d at the Academy Awards show. Side note: if they didn’t expect him to speak his mind, they’ve been spending too much time snorting coke in the bathroom.
From the first blast of “Black Mask & Gasoline” you can’t help but get woken up from whatever coma you happen to be in at the time. With a truckload of ammunition, anger, sheer perseverance and defiance, Rise Against rips and snorts from track to track. The foursome takes full advantage of their art, continually announcing their personal political mantra. The passionate and fully charged vocals of Tim McMcIlrath carries their message loud and clear, with the same level of aggression as the rest of the musical pack made up of traditional punk drum stylings, which lays the foundation for enflamed guitar rhythms that bend in a metal rock fashion from time to time.
The pop punk of today is fun and an escape at times, but it’s the lyrical insight of artists like Rise Against that really stands the test of time, telling tales that can connect with the listener in a number of ways, depending on their interpretation. “Voices off Camera” could lean in a “in a room full of people I feel so alone” feeling, while “Blood Red, White & Blue” has that type of “art imitates life” sense of timing, taking a harsh look at the culture and ways of American’s society and political structures. In my own personal interpretation, “Broken English” basically recites a conversation I would have with President Bush if I had the chance, “and we get right back up again/the things you’re telling me aren’t making any sense/right back up again/I’m sick of wishing for someone else/let the blind lead the blind ’cause it’s eye for an eye in your so-called life.”
As serious as these guys are about how they see the world and themselves, they still retain a significant sense of humor. If you were ever to saunter over to their web site, www.riseagainst.com, their bio is oddly familiar to another voltage rock band from the ’70s rock days. Rise Against lives up to their name and then some, and with every minute of this release, the revolution’s taking place in your ears…and hopefully in your brain as well.
