The Copyrights

The Copyrights: North Sentinel IslandNorth Sentinel Island (2011)
Red Scare

Reviewer Rating: 3.5

User Rating:

Contributed by: thepopeofchili-townthepopeofchili-town
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Published on August 26th 2011Carbondale, Illinois' the Copyrights belong to an elite group of modern pop-punk bands, along with Off with Their Heads and Teenage Bottlerocket, that keep making the same album again and again, yet do it so well that it ends up being a worthy purchase anyway. For the most part, that's what happens .

Carbondale, Illinois' the Copyrights belong to an elite group of modern pop-punk bands, along with Off with Their Heads and Teenage Bottlerocket, that keep making the same album again and again, yet do it so well that it ends up being a worthy purchase anyway. For the most part, that's what happens on their third Red Scare full-length (and fifth overall), North Sentinel Island, although the band do have a few new tricks up their sleeve.

Straight out of the gate, opener "Trustees of Modern Chemistry" bludgeons the listener with an almost hard rock riff, different than anything we've heard from the pop-punk stalwarts before. Meanwhile, with some whinier vocals, "Hard Wired" could have appeared on a mid-period Blink-182 album and few would have batted an eye. The acoustic guitar and keys on the outro of the bouncy "Bow Down" are also a new step for the band.

Other than those few (successful and surprisingly refreshing) experiments, though, this is classic Copyrights. If you were a fan before, North Sentinel Island isn't going to change that. "Expatriate Blues", arguably the album's strongest track, contains some of the best sing-alongs of the band's career and is just as great as past triumphs like "Planet Earth Nineteen-Ninety-Four" and "Out of Ideas". The aforementioned "Bow Down" is also a highlight, even though I have no idea what it's actually about ("When you're waiting for someone to die, because you like the way you look in a tie, bow down").

Elsewhere, the messages are much clearer. "Worn Out Passport" is a testament to living life to the fullest, in the spirit of Frank Turner's "Live Fast, Die Old", while "Expatriate Blues" is a perfect summation of moving away from home ("I'm not homesick, I'm sick of home... I hate it with a smile, I miss it with a sneer").

The Copyrights aren't looking to reinvent any wheels. They do their thing and they do it well, while throwing just enough new ideas in to keep things fresh. In the three years since their last album, Learn the Hard Way, they've come up with a great batch of pop-punk songs, and really, from the Copyrights, who would want anything else?

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Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not respon sible for them in any way. Seriously.

LobsterCraw (December 8, 2011)

I love this album. It may not be taking the band in any radical new directions...I'd argue that's a good thing.

ughlee (October 5, 2011)

Boring. These guys need to add a few new variables to the formula, it's tired. There are a couple good songs, but man, these guys need to throw something fresh into the mix.

kcedgebreak (August 29, 2011)

a big disappointment if you like the upbeat singalongs on Learn The Hard Way, but still enjoyable. download, don't buy

Blip (August 27, 2011)

So friggin great. They can't make a bad album.

heylittlefingers (August 27, 2011)

I think this is the best album of the year, best copyrights record, etc. Love it.
Banner Pilot is the only band that I think can top this for best of 2011

levidolphin (August 27, 2011)

I like this a lot but Learn the Hard Way is prolly still gonna be my favorite.

MagnetBox (August 26, 2011)

I like it, but not as much as their other material. Perhaps it needs time to grow on me? I think "Never Move Your Back Row" is one of my favorite Copyrights songs.

bryne (August 26, 2011)

This record's great and like the one before it, and the one before that, etc., it's decidedly different from anything else they've done. Best pop-punk band on the planet right now.

avery7190 (August 26, 2011)

one of the best albums of the year so far

RedScare (August 26, 2011)

I agree with Killtaker, MattRamone, and especially SonnySix!

MuhammadMormon (August 26, 2011)

I initially liked this album a lot, but was still baffled at all the "their best album omg" comments.
It's been about a month or so, and it just gets more and more boring with every play.
In the end, I'd say it's definitely their WORST album.

SonnySix (August 26, 2011)

Tits!

mattramone (August 26, 2011)

I like how moody and (relatively) mid-tempo this record is. Every song works as part of a larger piece. One of the best of the year so far.

killtaker (August 26, 2011)

I love this record and I think it is too simplistic to say that the Copyrights, Off With Their Heads and Teenage Bottlerocket keep making the same record over and over again.

misterspike (August 26, 2011)

Great album. I differ in that I think it sounds a bit different than Learn the Hard Way -- which isn't a dig at all.

spoon_of_grimbo (August 26, 2011)

absolutely LOVING this album. "restless head" and "well fed and warm" are amazing and worth a mention too, especially the god-sized vocal harmonies in the chorus of the former.

NattyBoh (August 26, 2011)

LOVE this album. Top 3 of the year for sure.