Your Favorite Weapon

by

Brand New

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I'm struggling to find the words to adequately convey just how much everyone NEEDS to own this album. After seeing Brand New in concert twice within two weeks (my friends and I drove four hours and got slightly stalkerish - but it was worth it) the overwhelming feeling I walked away with was amazement. The fact that some people may go their entire lives without ever hearing this band is unfortunate, because "Your Perfect Weapon" is the best pop-punk album I have ever heard, period.

Brand New stands out from the explosion of other bands in their genre both musically and lyrically. The dynamic combination of catchy, infectious, upbeat tunes ("The Shower Scene," "Jude Law and a Semester Abroad"), and slower, more melodic songs ("Soco Amaretto Lime," "The No Seatbelt Song") is pulled off flawlessly. The entire album is a testimony to the bands' ability to be versatile - smooth transitions between true rock out tracks and softer acoustic numbers reveal confidence and undeniable talent.

Lyrically, "Your Perfect Weapon" is serious and smart. It's typical 'bad-breakup/teenage angst/growing up' subject matter, but the lyrics are original and poetic (at times dark) and told in an almost story-like fashion. Every song hints at personal experience, resulting in carefully-crafted, raw, and relatable anthems. Lead vocalist Jesse Lacey sings passionately and perfectly; the harmonies added by the other band members do much to intensify and enrich.

I would recommend this CD above any other in my collection, and also add that seeing Brand New live is an amazing experience. You will not be dissapointed with this band or their debut release. After just one listen, you'll wonder how you ever survived without 'your favorite weapon'!

First of all, I am a huge Brand New fan. They've shown some of the best growth from album to album than almost any other band currently around. Your Favorite Weapon was their first CD and it's a pretty solid effort, but nothing compared to what they have done since.

1. The Shower Scene: 4/5-Great intro for the album, good lyrics, hard-hitting beat. It does feel like it drags past its short 2:24 running time though.

2. Jude Law and a Semester Abroad: 4/5-The first Brand New song I ever heard a long, long time ago. Great choice for a first single, catchy chorus but it grows tiresome after a while.

3. Sudden Death in Carolina: 3/5-Good lyrics almost ruined by boring poppy beat. It's a good song the first few times, but like many tracks on this CD it gets old quick.

4. Mix Tape: 3/5-Pretty much the opposite as Sudden Death. It starts off slow and slowly goes uphill and gets faster and leads to a sick guitar part at the end. The downside though are the dumb, repetitive lyrics. Jesse can write far better than this.

5. Failure by Design: 5/5-One of my favorite tracks on the album. It's undeniably catchy and in my opinion would have been a great single.

6. Last Chance to Lose Your Keys: 2/5-Probably the most forgettable track on the album. Sounds like something that a band would record right when they're starting off, not album material really. It is slightly catchy though.

7. Logan to Government Center: 3/5-Another pretty forgettable song, though doesn't sound as repetitive and cliche as some other songs on the album. I also do like The Cure "Close to Me" lyrics they stuck in there.

8. The No Seatbelt Song: 5/5-Probably the most haunting and beautiful song on the album. This is what most of the album should have been. This track really displays Brand New's writing ability and remains a favorite of mine.

9. Seventy Times 7: 3/5-One of the most overrated songs on the album in my opinion. A lot of people seem to love it but I just can't get in to it really. It sounds like something any band could do, but has good lyrics.

10. Secondary: 2/5-It's ironic that I keep saying this but this track is repetitive, cliche, and not very solid. Like most songs on the album though it has pretty decent lyrics hidden within the annoyingly poppy beat.

11. Magazines: 3/5-Interesting song to say the least. It quickly falls in to the tiresome pop territory half of the songs on this album do.

12. Soco Amaretto Lime: 5/5-Luckily the album closes on a high note. Another fantastic acoustic song that shows Brand News extraordinary potential that they later discovered and then some.

Your Favorite Weapon is not the best debut album I've ever heard, not even close. It has many great tracks on it, but is weighed down by all the repetitive, poppy tunes. It's incredible to think that this is the same band who later released the masterpieces that are Deja Entendu and The Devil and God are Raging Inside Me.