Welcome to Love/Hate, where we review both great and terrible records every issue!
Because honestly, who wants to read a review of a mediocre album?

Love: Anti-Flag - The Bright Lights of America
by Erik Grieco

WARNING: This review has an unhealthy amount of lyrical quotes because I think that there are a lot of great ones on this album.

These guys have never let me down and this record is what I’ve always hoped they’d become. From the opening acoustic guitar and chant of “You’ll get yours when you’re good and ready, you’ll get yours and go straight to hell,” I wanted this record to be great and it is. It is obvious that they’ve been ready to keep sonically rowing and Tony Visconti, their newest producer, helps make Ant-Flag’s big sound a reality. Anti-flag needs to have this pop edge to get a message across to those that need to hear it and this record is ready for the radio or basement chants.

Track dissection:

1. Good and Ready Let’s you know that a personal message is coming at you and it’s not a pretty one.

2. The Bright Lights of America The pop chorus reaches to the listener and can make you feel inspired. I don’t know what it inspires me to do but I’ll keep listening.

3. Vices I have a lot of respect for un-wordy songs that get a point across and Vices is one of those tunes. You could not even listen to the verses to know what bass player, #2, wants to get across to you...Frustration. This is the type of song that vocalists on which blow their throat out because you want to scream the chorus. “We all have our vices, we all have our flaws. We all have our anger, we all have our love.”

4. The Modern Rome Burning Mumia Abu-Jamal appears on yet another album because he says things that politically-oriented bands are concerned with. In this case it’s imprisonment.

5. If You Wanna Steal (You Better Learn How To Lie) “Heaven and Hell are just a myth so you’d better pay attention to this moment.”

6. No Warning This has the old Anti-Flag sound, think Their System Doesn’t Work for You. sessions. But it also has a good hi-hat heavy beat at times to lighten it up.

7. Spit In the Face A punk song with a new rock variation of the classic Anti-Flag guitar solo.

8. We Are the Lost Highly produced: strings, drum effects, odd noises and low volume verse/high volume chorus.

9. Go West A song about how it’s okay to run away to find a new life or happiness. Lot’s of group vocals going on in this song.

10. The Smartest Bomb All of the members do a great job at shining together but it’s probably the weakest track if I had to pick one.

11. Shadow of the Dead There’s a cool acappella part and a changed tempo ending with horn and string parts that are quite neat and help out a song with another sing a long chorus.

12. The Ink and the Quill (Be Afraid) At the 2:45 mark this track gets really energetic and great.

13. Bonus track I actually feel like they sat around in a circle eating cans of baked beans writing this song. It brings up Christians and the flag being “shoved down your throat” like any good Anti-Flag song would. It’s an interesting closer but remember it’s a bonus track so I suggest skipping it until you feel the actual album once through.

The Bright Lights of America is a record about frustration with the world at a personal level and at the global level. Side A is ready for the radio may actually get requested, while Side B keeps fans from the past feeling comfortable that the Anti-Flag they love can still be themselves. Like most good records, it should be given the time necessary to properly enjoy it. Take a drive around Pittsburgh for an hour and enjoy it knowing that these guys are your friends and neighbors.

Hate: Scarlett Johansson - Anywhere I Lay My Head
by Scott Niekum

One night a few years ago while drinking with friends I had what seemed like a great idea at the time -- to completely re-record a Postal Service album using my voice as a replacement for all the instruments and synth. Of course, the next day I woke up sober and laughed, realizing what a completely idiotic idea it was. I figure that Scarlett Johannsson, or whichever asshat at her record label that came with the concept for this musical turd, probably went through a similar thought process, except that they still think it was an act of genius to have Scarlett Johansson croon Tom Waits songs in a manly voice over ambiant techno music.

Now I have to admit, I haven't actually listened to this record. I listened to the 4 trainwrecks that her label posted on Scarlett's official myspace page and that was quite enough. A few years ago, when Bomb The Music Industry (one of my favorite bands) put out an earache-inducing cover of Anywhere I Lay My Head, I thought that no one else could ever do a better job of defiling one of my favorite Tom Waits tracks. But lo and behold, Ms. Johansson has taken the crown with the agonizing title track off this humdinger of a record! The sound is difficult to describe to those who haven't heard the horror personally. Imagine ambiant fan noise overlayed with Postal Service style blips and beeps, church organ, and drumming straight off an 80's synth record. Now add deep female vocals overdubbed at least 6 times to get that great at-the-bottom-of-the-ocean sound and you might a have a vague feeling for the record.

Supposedly there is one original song on the album that Scarlett co-wrote, but I really have no interest in listening. Check out her myspace page for a good laugh, but stay far away from this shit stain or risk permanent damage to any talent you may have.