The Offspring Attempt to Rise, But Stall Out On Runway

The Offspring, punk rock's red-headed stepchild, released Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace on Tuesday, their first album since 2003's Splinter. The Offspring haven't exactly ever been at the top of anything in their time. Smash may be the most successful indie-label album ever, but it came out 2 months after Green Day's seminal album Dookie. Every step of the way, where Dexter Holland was the kid at the science fair with the paper-maché volcano, Billie Joe Armstrong was the kid next to him that managed to build a flux capacitor. Likewise, every move they've made in marketing this album has been matched and overshadowed by Coldplay (who also dropped an album on Tuesday).

Before going into the review, I need to make one gripe about the album title. Yeah, it fits the nature of the record well, but I'd feel a hell of a lot better about it if it didn't bear a striking resemblance to the most recent Foo Fighters album. I know, I know-- I'm picking nits here. Just pointing out that it bugs me a bit. Not that this album holds a candle to the Foos though.

The record opens well enough with "Half-Truism", an anthemic musing on the state of the world a la Sum 41's "We're All To Blame". "Half-Truism" shows off some of what makes the Offspring a decent band; a huge chorus, a knowledge of both good musicianship and punk rock, and a means of blending the two together. When those qualities come through, Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace, has some real highlights.

However, inconsistency and half-assedness keep those gems marred. Other moments on the album either lack cohesion (the horrendous first single "Hammerhead") or try too hard to show the band trying to be a hardcore punk band, and less time actually being hardcore like the messy "Trust In You" (In theater we call this practice a number of bad things, among them 'mailing it in'). In other moments the Offspring are just bland, sounding less like the Dead Kennedys and more like Good Charlotte. "Fix You" may not be a cover of the Coldplay song, but it's boring enough to be mistaken for it. Even when the band does something that extends its own boundaries, its merely going into the safe territory of radio-ready rock balladry, such as "A Lot Like Me" and the fun, yet-all-too-familiar "You're Gonna Go Far, Kid" (the apparent second single).

This is not to say the album is a total loss. Dexter Holland's vocals, with the soaring "whoa-oh-oh's" behind him, and the overall skill of the band manages to keep a number of songs floating, if not actually very good. "Kristy, Are You Doing Okay?" is a powerful, emotional piece of music that, while again smelling of Sum 41, shows off the band's potential for something greater than what's presented. The track most reminiscent of older Offspring "Stuff Is Messed Up" can't decide if it's being serious or not, but halfway through it stops mattering because it's so damn fun.

However, shitty songs played well are still shitty songs.

Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace is a rarity in that it actually gets better the longer you listen to it. The challenge is having the patience and will to get through the subpar and flat-out awful. Since I admittedly lost interest before the album closed out (and only kept going for the good of the review), I can't say that it's necessarily worth the effort you'd need to put forth.

Final Score: 4/10
The Offspring - Half-Truism [iTunes]
The Offspring - You're Gonna Go Far Kid [iTunes]

NIN, Offspring Buy A Round for Fans

As expected by just about everyone, yesterday Nine Inch Nails released their newest album entitled The Slip to their website, free to fans. So read a statement from Trent Reznor on nin.com:

(thank you for your continued and loyal support over the years - this one's on me)

The album is available in every digital format imaginable, and in true NIN style, all 10 tracks are available for remixing. For the fans that enjoy holding music in their hands, a CD release is expected in the summer, but like with Ghosts, the digital version and CD are identical in sound quality, so the only difference is the ability to hold it in your hands.

Contrary to speculation by myself and other blogs, The Slip is NOT Year Zero 2.0. It is a completely separate entity combining the best of With Teeth (such as it was), Year Zero, and Ghosts I-IV. Musically this might be the best thing I've ever heard NIN do. It packs the same angsty, emotional punch of previous work, puts it behind a manic blend of grotesquely danceable hooks and drum beats (as best heard on first single "Discipline") and grinding synths and guitars (see also "Letting You") that would make unsuspecting listeners' ears bleed. Lyrically this is a different animal than Year Zero. I think I'm one of the few people who at least liked for the songwriting, and those strengths came through on this album. And then there are the two surprisingly chill instrumental tracks near the homestretch that lead into the final punch of "Demon Seed". Overall in the last three months Nine Inch Nails has released two quality albums that bloggers would be remiss to let slip by unnoticed when it comes time for the Best of '08 revues. It's too early to hand the prize to Trent for The Slip, but there's no denying the mark NIN has left on this year.

Ruling on the Field: 9/10
Highlight Reel: Echoplex, The Four of Us Are Dying
(The downloads are really just a formality so I can get picked up by Hype Machine. Go get the full album from nin.com. It's free and amazing. You have no excuse.)

And with that I am delcaring a one-month moratorium on NIN-related posts, barring Trent Reznor announcing his candidacy for president between now and then.

Also joining the free music party yesterday were The Offspring, following Coldplay's footsteps and releasing "Hammerhead", the first single from this summer's Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace, as a free download. "Hammerhead" is classic Offspring with a bit of a twist in the style of new Green Day. Those soaring harmonies are still there (one of my favorite things about the Offspring), and it's still fast paced punk rock, but there's something bigger about it. "Hammerhead" is a bit more arena-ready than I've ever heard The Offspring, and more power to them for it. I don't think that means we should expect a new take on American Idiot with the new album, just a broader sound this time out. I've never actually bought an Offspring CD, but at this rate I just might give Rise and Fall, Rage And Grace a shot.

"Hammerhead" is still available for download at theoffspring.com

I will be back sometime in the next 24 hours with reviews of some traditionally-released stuff from the last week or two (namely the Jimmy Eat World re-issue).

==TJ==