HOPE FOR MEN
Year: 2007
Genre: Punk Rock Sub-Genres: Noise, Hardcore, Grunge
Label: Sub-Pop Records
Tracks: 10
Length: 41 Minutes (Long)
Style: Weird/Funny/Emotional
My Rating: 6/8
Pissed Jeans is a rock band from Allentown, Pennsylvania. This is their second album, and it was their first release on Sub-Pop Records. This album is of a similar style to their album before it, "Shallow", but with even more interesting song lyrics.
1. People Person
Starts with the shrieks and roars of the noisy guitars. Turns out that they are here to stay. This song is kind of fast. The song describes a "People Person" (a successful social-butterfly-type) from the protagonist's point of view and the slight feelings of hatred and jealousy for him.
2. Secret Admirer
A slow, grunge-type song. It tells the story of a guy telling a woman that she has a "secret admirer", giving her not-so-subtle hints that the secret admirer is HIM -- describing things he does, like trying to figure out what car she drives, but "not trying to be a creep". A song the lonelier of us can all relate to.
3. A Bad Wind
Medium tempo. Towards the end, you can hear quiet whispering behind the screamed chorus. Interesting drumming.
4. Scrapbooking
A song about... scrapbooking!! Soft, sad music with bass guitar and piano plays in the background, as Brad moans and groans through the motions of making his very own scrapbook while looking at the pictures he uses for it. A seriously emotional, realistic track. This is how people THINK.
5. I've Still Got You (Ice Cream)
This one sounds like a Flipper song. It's a song about when your friends leave you, and everything feels like shit, you've still got yer ice cream to be your friend. Kinda catchy, actually. There's even a music video for this one! End o' Side 1.
6. Fantasy World
Sounds like '80s Seattle grunge. But this one's about a guy creating his own fantasy world, just playin' with his toys and eating pizza and drinking soda on a Friday night. I remember the days of making my own fantasy worlds... but I think Bradley still does this, actually. More people should, really... like the rest of the songs, there's a sort of comedically depressing undertone to this one; the line, "I am a special guy in my fantasy world"...
7. I'm Turning Now
Another fasty song. It's a song about when you're at a stop-light, and the light just seems to stay red FOREVER, until you get so frustrated that you just go and make a fucking right-turn outta frustration! The second half of the song is sorta relaxed-paced and bass-driven.
8. Caught Licking Leather
A story about a guy with a leather-fetish who had a crush on a girl and dreamt of licking her boots, and must've written her a letter, and then she lost interest in him. The second verse goes on to a describe a girl who enjoyed getting tickled by feathers. Very cool beat.
9. The Jogger
A creepy spoken-word piece about the security-net lifestyle of a yuppie jogger. Really interesting one to listen to, simply for its emotion and effectiveness it has to it.
10. My Bed
It's a long song about just laying in your bed, trying to sleep, and just thinking about everything in your final hour of the day. After about a minute, the percussion starts to kick in. Two-thirds through the song, it gets much more energetic and fast! The last two minutes of thing is a total feedback-fest of crashing noise and false stops. The End.
Besides being a very good noisy album, it seems to very well describe the more mundane aspects of working-class life and the many social disadvantages they have to the popular wealthy wine-drinker people around them. This album has a great sense of drama to it -- making ordinary things in life seem like a big deal: Ice Cream is one's only true friend in life, scrapbooking is an emotionally tormenting activity, a red light is a torture device, an imaginary "Fantasy World" is a safe haven from all that is wrong in the real world, and the Jogger is a force of Satan. This album is abrasive, funny, and realistic as well. Recommended for fans of Flipper, Black Flag, Nirvana, Sonic Youth, and the Melvins.
MUSIC VIDEO FOR "I'VE STILL GOT YOU (ICE CREAM)"
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