Spent the weekend in the desert at my mom’s and only wished once that I was back in the confines of the new space I call home. I say that’s a win for my family because usually I sit there mad all weekend about the visit, but this time we kept busy. The only downside was that I was away from writing for almost two days. When you write 15-20 things a week, two days is a lifetime away from your trusted Word doc and composition book. Today I’m breathing easier and reunited with my true loves as I sit and wait for anything from After The Fall’s Unkind to ignite the writing fire in me once again. It took some time, but by the seventh song me and After The Fall connected rather ironically, and I finally got into the punk, sometimes too hardcore ways of Unkind.
Let’s begin with that “too hardcore.” If you’re a fan of the genre, you’re sitting there thinking, this bitch. There is absolutely no such thing. That’s up for debate and if you’re me, songs like “Screwers” and “Attention Dependent” were too insane to handle, but if you’re into music that’s as manic as the inside of Lindsay Lohan’s mind, then songs like these are for you. As are “Wrong” and “Controlled.” While I was more into the other half of the record that was just punk and had no real hardcore influence, I did appreciate “Double Negative.” If you’ve ever had a friend that’s down and out about everything and could find the bad side of a beautiful day, dedicate this to them.
On to the other side of Unkind, the songs that made more sense to me. Title track, “Unkind” was so straight forward and to the point lyrically, that I couldn’t help but love the broken heart advice tune it turned out to be. I mean I’ve never experienced one, but I’m sure I’ll head back to this song one day when it happens. “Decade” was a nostalgic note to let longtime and new fans that After The Fall don’t regret a thing, and when a band’s been around that long, it’s nice to hear that they like where they’re at and aren’t ending any time soon. Now where did I happen to find a new personal anthem? “Writer’s Block” of course. When the song declares in a pissed off manner, “Why can’t I create?!” I couldn’t help but scream along, as I was still in a bit of a funk after a weekend of doing little.
After The Fall have been around longer than most bands out right now and deserve one hand for that and another for Unkind, a hardcore punk record that gets the creative juices pumping, advises on lost love and lets you rage musically. Unkind is out now, so check it and the band out now. Not after you’ve played some Facebook games, but right now.
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