The Anticipation
Will Alkaline Trio's jump to a new record label effect their music?
Alkaline Trio came together in the northwest suburbs of Chicago in late 1996. The original lineup was drastically different than the one that recorded Good Mourning and Crimson. Originally, Alkaline Trio consisted of Rob Doran, Glenn Porter and the only remaining original member, Matt Skiba. In its initial incarnation, the band lasted less than a full year before the departure of Rob Doran. He was replaced by current bassist/vocalist Dan Andriano. In 2000, the band was signed by Vagrant Records and got a new drummer in former Smoking Popes drummer Mike Felumlee. After the release of From Here to Infirmary, Felumlee left the band and in stepped current drummer Derek Grant. This lineup has recorded three albums, two EP's and a split CD.
Goddamnit, the debut album, was released on Asian Man Records on October 13th of 1998. It received a warm critical reception and was praised for Skiba's catchy guitar hooks as well as the lyrics that seemed to have been completely immersed in alcohol. In commemoration of the band's 10th anniversary, Goddamnit was reissued by Asian Man Records as a two-disc deluxe edition. The new edition featured a remastered version of the album, along with four bonus tracks from a 1996 demo and a 90-minute documentary about the origins of the band.
Alkaline Trio came close to mainstream success with the release of From Here to Infirmary. The single "Stupid Kid" garnered them much attention for the music video that contained controversial imagery. In the video, an elementary school boy has a crush on his teacher and is ridiculed by his fellow students and the teacher when he tries to impress her. At the end of the video, he goes outside and removes the hat that he had been wearing throughout the video, revealing two satan-esque horns on his forehead. The next scene has the teacher surrounded by flames, struggling against an unseen force. The original version of the video was banned in the U.S. and was replaced by a version in which the teacher is not surrounded by flames and the boy doesn't have horns.
More commercial success came with Good Mourning, the first single "We've Had Enough" got significant radio airplay and the video was in heavy rotation on MTV and MTV2. Frontman Matt Skiba holds the belief that the album didn't flow well and could have been better, despite generally good reviews. Because of his disappointment with Good Mourning, Skiba began writing Crimson merely three weeks after the release of Good Mourning. The album's lyrics are decidedly dark, featuring two songs about murder. "Sadie" is about a member of the Manson family who took place in the Sharon Tate murders of 1969, and "Prevent this Tragedy" refers to three individuals who were convicted of murdering three children in 1993.
Two versions of Agony and Irony hit stores on the first of July. The regular edition features 11 tracks, and an additional bonus track if purchased through iTunes. A deluxe edition, that includes five acoustic tracks and two additional bonus tracks, will also be offered. Three of the tracks on Agony and Irony were released as an EP on April 22nd, giving a taste of what the full length offers. The new tracks are definitely poppier than Crimson, but still maintain the distinct lyrical and musical sound of Alkaline Trio.
Overall Recommendation: Agony and Irony picks up where Crimson left off and looks to step things up a notch. If you're unsure about purchasing the album, preview the tracks on iTunes or Myspace. You'll most likely be sold.
Posted by Cory Roop on Jun 30, 2008 @ 6:35 am
