According to the guy from Underoath, Sullivan is the future of emotional rock. I think that guy is quite alright. Sullivan delivered a dark record where strong guitar riffs meet active and clever lyrics, with the will to show how to play good quality music with contents. “Hey’ I’m A Ghost” is filled with pop rock tunes like the opener “Down Here We All Float”, where you will hear soft voices smashing into strong guitar riffs, or the slow “The Charity of Saint Elizabeth”, where slower rhythms make their appearence and sad moments reminding of past stories have their chance to make the listeners think. The eleven tracks are overall on the same level, with a strong presence of emotionally active guitars ala Elliott and pop rock moments that won’t leave you disappointed.

The Juliana Theory died earlier this year, and I remember I spent a whole day listening to their discography, as it happened for The Get Up Kids. I was quite sad. I never loved their “Love” album too much, but their records on Tooth And Nail were just awesome. On this collection of TJT’s songs, “A Small Noise”, you will find all of the best songs the band ever recorded, to remember the old times if you have been a fan, or to discover one of the most influential emo bands of the latest years. The record is filled with songs from albums like “Emotion Is Dead”, “Understand The Dream Is Over” and the EP “Music from Another Room”, with such anthems as “To The Tune Of 5,000 Screaming Children”, “We’re At The Top Of The World (To The Simple Two)”, “Duane Joseph” and “If I Told You This Was Killing Me Would You Stop?” that really made the soundtrack for my generation. If you feel like after The Juliana Theory you lost something, “A Small Noise” is a worth purchase.

Chicago’s finest The Lawrence Arms are back with their third album on Fat Wreck Chords, and this time, you can forget about concept masterpieces

and stories that tell incredible adventures. On the band’s newest record you will get what the Lawrence Arms know how to do best: drunken stories

about friends, alchool, drinks, but also serious issues with a sick sense of humor. Musically, you can see how Brendan Kelly sings much more than in

the past (maybe his experience with his band The Falcon helped him to find out his vocal skills) while singer Chris still sings but much less. From the

point of view of the production, it is always tight, thanks to Matt Allison, and the greatest thing is how the band was able to develop a truly original

sound, reminiscent of Jawbreaker of Leatherface, but really original. The twelve songs on “Oh! Caluctta!” are fresh, fast pissed off and so honest

that you will have to appreciate them.

The Sainte Catherines hail from Canada and man, they fucking rock! With years of touring under their belts, with a really straight in your face punk

rock attitude, tattoed bellies, and clever lyrical skills, this band is sure to be the greatest new band to come out for Fat Wreck Chords. Produced by

Alex Newport (At The Drive In, Mars Volta), the new album “Dancing For Decadence” is like a kick in your face: you won’t hear teenage whining, you

won’t hear the same old government bashing, you won’t hear love songs or Myspace fucking jokes, you won’t hear stupid songs about how these

guys have a trouble living. Fuck that, you can have that on any Fall Out Boy or My Chemical Romance album. On this disc, you get the real sweat.

The real PUNK ROCK. WITH ALL CAPS. Because this is what this band is all about: playing clever, melodic and fucking dirty punk rock, with a post

hardcore and melodic touch, but with one great attitude, as it should always be. The best thing is the humour: songs like “Get Your Politics Out Of My Hair” and “I’d Rather Be Part Of The Dying Bungee Scene” are totally smart, with a cool punk rock attack and great melodic rhythms that won’t leave you quiet. If then you really can’t get enough of the sweat, get to listen to “Us Against The Music” and the chaos will be complete. If you’re looking for THE punk rock record worth buying in 2006, this is it.

Love Equals Death is a new four piece to come out on Fat Wreck Chords, and I think this is a quite weird band. They look like one of those eyeliner

band (My Chemical Romance, AFI), but sound fucking awesome. Yes. It is a lot like going back to 1995, when hardcore punk bands as AFI, Jughead’s

Revenge and One Hit Wonder were still around, playing melodic punk rock fused with the aggression of hardcore. Because this is what Love Equals

Death is all about: making you move! With their energy, intense powerful vocal lines and screams, this band deliver such songs as “Black Rain” and “Caught In A Trap” that become anthems after one single listen. The weak point is that after a couple of listens, you get the feeling to bring back your old vynil from Bad Brains and The Germs and start doing it old school again.

NOFX release this six song EP right before their April new full album. “Never Trust A Hippy” is a mixture of songs: two songs from the upcoming album,

two previously unreleased songs that will be available only on this EP, and two songs taken from the band’s seven inch club (which I am a part of, by

the way). On these new tunes NOFX left Ryan Greene as a producer and kept on working with the Descendents guys (Jason Livermore, Bill

Stevenson) and the style is “The War On Errorims” alike: very melodic guitar riffs, ultra catchy vocal harmonies and Fat Mike’s greatest songwriting

(the song “The Marxist Brothers” has got the best lyrics I heard in a NOFX songs in years). Speaking of the music, it’s still what you would expect

from NOFX, if you do not count the all acoustic “You’re Wrong”, and the pissed off “Everything In Moderation”, which is a very short and fast punk

song about being in a band for life. I think this EP is a great anticipation for the next band’s album, so, I am seriously anxious to hear it, because I

think NOFX will release a grat disc.

After three years from the previous Fat Wreck album “The Terror State”, Anti-Flag are back with their major label debut, “For Blood And Empire”, a record that will surely sign a new point in the band’s history. It’s real nice to see that despite the band is releasing a major label album, they did not leave their beliefs behind their backs, and it is awesome how “For Blood And Empire” is not influenced by major label marketing strategies, as Anti-Flag still shout out their anthems and their ideals. Starting from the opening single “The Press Corpse”, where they deal about how the media hides real facts, to the smashing “The W.T.O. Kills Farmers”, where you can hear shaking punk rock breakdowns. Musically, the first thing that you notice when you pop the cd into your stereo, is the presence of new elements that we never heard on Anti-Flag’s songs before: on “Hymn For The Dead” you can hear horns and trumpets in the middle of the song, making it a real anthem, while on the semi-acoustic ballad “One Trillion Dollars” you can hear violins and strings. The production, due to Dave Schiffman (Thrice, Red Hot Chili Peppers, System Of A Down, Audioslave) is top notch but he did not influence the band’s music making it sound polished or cleaner: Anti-Flag is rawer than ever, on such tunes as the dirty “State Funeral”, or on “Exodus”, a real hardcore anthem. If you think Anti-Flag is all about politics and criticism towards American Governemnt, just wait till you hear the skanking “War Sucks, Let’s Party!”, where ska rhythms are fused together with old school punk rock. The main idea behind “For Blood And Empire” is that on this concept album the band revolves around an unnerving neo-conservative think tank called the Project for a New American Century (PNAC), and the incredible cohesive power of the album comes out through not just music, but lyrics too. “For Blood And Empire” is quite possibly the best punk rock album released in the last years, where a real punk rock band has no fear to speak out the voice of the truth.

After a self titled EP released last year on Jade Tree, THE LOVED ONES are back with their first full album, and it’s on Fat Wreck. The trio, made of ex members of Kid Dynamite, Lifetime, The Curse and Paint It Black, delivers 13 tracks of energic punk rock’n'roll, where you can hear vibrant guitar, pop melodies and fast anthems. “Jane” and “100K” are without any sort of doubt the two masterpieces of the album, with easy listening melodies, Dave’s raw vocals and incredible catchy choruses. The production, due to Mr. Brian McTernan (Thrice, Hot Water Music) is perfect, and contrary to the previous band’s recordings, this time it stresses the ability of the trio to generate old school punk rock song with a touch of innovation. “Keep Your Heart” is quite possibly one of the best punk rock album to ever come out for Fat Wreck Chords, and I am quite sure we will be hearing a lot from these guys.

We Are The Fury hails from Toledo, OH and they’re a young five piece that debut with a five song EP filled of

electronic elements. Putting the electro dance in punk rock n roll: this is what We Are The Fury are going to

do. And they also make it happen with good results. Such songs as “Soap Opera” and “Anesthetic Parade” are

pure anthems for dance parties, where you can both shake your heads against the wall but also dance with

some girl. They mix Head Automatic electronic rhythms with Hot Hot Heat dances and post-hardcore guitar

riffs and song structures, to create something that sticks in the middle of alternative music and pop stuff. If

you ever liked Daryl Palumbo’s music, The Used, but also Cursive, Head Automatica and Hot Hot Heat, give

this EP a listen, because you will be real surprised and won’t wait to listen the full album. PS: on a side note,

I absolutely love the artwork. You know, I think We Are The Fury always think aboutTHAT, and I do too.

Ever We Fall hails from Portland, OR and they are a brand new band to come out for the always stunning

Hopeless Records, and this trio will surely make a lot of heads turn in the near future. “We Are But Human” is

a complex record where you can hear powerful power pop melodies fused with post hardcore song structures,

with emotional strong melodies fused with disturbing power pop riffs. The main thing behind Ever We Fall is

that the band is able to mix easy listening and catchy choruses with a more clever attitude towards

“innovation” in music, creating something quite unique. After working with John Goodmanson (Death Cab For

Cutie, Vaux, Sleater-Kinney) for their previous EP, the new twelve tracks on this debut album show how

EVER WE FALL try not to lose themselves in the middle of the useless bands that sound all the same, rying to

put new stuff in their songs as on “Great Day For An Airstrike” and “Schoolyard Crush”, with their original

rhythms and melodies. If you like catchy guitar hooks and furious and fast rhythms for party music, “We Are

But Human” will stick in your ears for days and days, waiting for Hopeless to release more stuff that sound

like this.