Lies for the Liars

by

The Used

Edit

Brilliant.

Anyone knowing me personally, know it's a rarity for me to grace an album with that title. With my CD collection nearing the thousand(s) mark it seems like after around 99-00 I couldn't for the life of me buy an album and enjoy it from start to finish, and to be honest, after buying The Used's "In Love and Death" I almost had to force my self to sit thru it at times, it didn't have that edge to it like the first release.

If you are a fan of the used for any release or even a single alone, PICK UP THIS ALBUM. The creative element on this album are remarkable..bringing glimpses of other Genres into it like swing, big band (Track 6/Paralyzed),electronic(The Bird and the Worm), and many other genres.

For true fans of their first release, particularly fans of the tracks "Blue and Yellow", "On my Own", and "Poetic Tragedy"; Lies for the Liars comes close to pegging the impact of those with songs of similar sound like "Smother Me" and "Find a Way"

Even though this album IS toned down a few notches due to Bert's inability to scream as he would want to anymore, in no way does that make this album less of a phenomenal release. Some people look to The Used for JUST that reason, then buy this album and try to down-talk it because of the lack of screaming. If you are a true The Used fan , you know that's not what this band is all about.

Face it: The Used needed to change. Sure, when they appeared on the scene in 2002 with their self-titled debut, they were a force to be reckoned with. All genre labelling aside, they were a rarity because they could back up their status with some great song-writing and beautiful musical moments, as best displayed on "Blue & Yellow" and "Poetic Tragedy." But this is 2007. Screamo has gone the way of rap-metal, meaning that it is horribly oversaturated and even the innovators are starting to sound like parodies. So it's not such a terrible thing for the boys from Utah (with a new drummer) to want to change things up and earn themselves some staying power. It's just that on "Lies For The Liars," the band's third effort, it just doesn't work.

I will have to state right off the bat that the bulk of this album is forgettable. We have the meaty, catchy tracks like "Pretty Handsome Awkward" and "The Ripper" which will satisfy the usual Used fan, but which provide no substance whatsoever. Elsewhere, they sound like they are trying to be a completely different band. "The Bird And The Worm," the first single, is the kind of drab, tuneless garbage you'd expect a band like Panic At The Disco to churn out. Likewise, "Liar, Liar" makes them sound like a heavy Fall Out Boy. Wipe the smile off your face, that is not a good thing.

I'll give them that "Earthquake," "Wake The Dead" and "Smother Me" do a decent job at updating their sound while at the same time pleasing the core fanbase, but much of this album seems bound and determined to eliminate The Used's personality. Too many times, on too many tracks, they sound like other bands. Instead of experimenting with their sound and turning out something new or at least fresh sounding, they seem to have taken the easy route, listened to what their peers were doing, and try to mimick and milk it for all it's worth. Thousands of eyeliner stained teens with hair in their face and their eyes glued to Fuse might find this to be a good album, but everyone else will leave disappointed.