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The MenzingersThe Menzingers: On the Impossible PastOn the Impossible Past (2012)Epitaph Records Reviewer Rating: 4.5 User Rating: Contributed by: BreadedBreaded (others by this writer | submit your own) "All good things must fall apart." So go the lyrics on the opening track, "Good Things," on the Menzinger's latest effort On the Impossible Past. That line on the very first track sums up the feeling of the entire album. Classic Menzingers. After Chamberlain Waits, it seemed the group was in .  
"All good things must fall apart."           Please login or register to post comments.What are the benefits of having a Punknews.org account?
This ripe old turd got album of the year?! Oh dear. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. This is PunkNews' album of the year. Really? garbage record album of the year for sure. Ava House is so good fat tony WTFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF? Its a stronger record than Chamberlain Waits. Repeated listens, which are rewarded in spades, has made this clear to me. And I say this as Chamberlain is the most played album on my iPhone. Give it a chance and I think you'll agree. i liked chamberlain waits alot. it was exciting, had momentum, differentiation of the songs from one another, tempo changes in the songs, etc. This new one that I've only listened to once so far sounds slow, simple, boring, and sad. It sounds like a sad sack Gaslight Anthem. Now they don't have as much to make them stand out from the pack of amplified Americana punk. Thumbs up. This is gonna be a tough record to beat for album of the year. Get's better with every listen. I've now spun this at least 30 times and I'm still not sick of it. It's a near-perfect album - I'm crazy about every song except "Ava House," and even that one's still pretty fucking good. If this isn't my album of the year, then whatever manages to top it will create world peace. This is going to be one of the best albums of the year. I don't know how anything can beat it. I wish "Sun Hotel" sounded like how they play it live, with the extended jam....soooo good a solid and beautifully written and produced record. My fav of 2012 so far. I love Casey. I wish it was longer though. The passion in this record is unmeasurable. I'm in shock. Although at this point I guess I shouldn't be. Lyrics on this album hit home pretty hard for me. Top contender for best of the year, not a single song to skip over. I only liked a select few songs from Chamberlain Waits, but this album has a lot more depth and is overall a stronger release for me I completely agree with the sentiment of the review, but completely disagree with all the choices you chose to highlight. Holy Shit this is a great album! First Epitaph album I bought in years. I think this album is far superior to Chamberlain Waits. I'm glad to see they've ditched the awkward screams and weak filler tracks ("Come Here Often?"). They've matured and developed their own unique sound. A thoroughly enjoyable album from start to finish. I probably don't like this album as much, musically, as Chamberlian Waits, but this album is better lyrically and feels more cohesive and unified. The themes on this album are just great. "Casey", "Good Things", and "Burn After Writing" are easily my favourites. The production on this album is incredible. It sounds fantastic. I got into these dudes two years ago, I love their previous material. This album is an evolution and their best work to date. I'll be damned if "Gates" isn't one of the best punk rock songs written in the last 10 years, it gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. Bravo Menzingers, bravo... This is really an awesome record. I don't get nor I don't care about all the bullshit being thrown to each other in this page, but if you don't have the minimum sensibility to appreciate how this is, at the very least, a nice album, aside of if you think they're gonna sell out, or whatever you don't like from their sound, you should really go back to listening to hot water music's no division or belvedere's angels live in my town on repeat. I don't care wich one. Open your goddamn minds a little bit and don't just pretend you're the boss of the business and you have the ability to tell everybody their taste is shit even with a still pretty underground band. Haven't heard it yet, but the saggy bewbs on the cover are turning me off. Weird, but awesome. It's a slow punk album with great writing. It's not "bad" in any shape or form, I think people are just way overreacting to this album just because of how legendary Chamberlain was and because well...its the Menzingers, and it's true they're awesome dudes. I knew this wasn't going to top Chamberlain, but it really doesn't even come close to any of their other records or EPs. An album full of mid-tempo songs from them feels rushed and frankly boring to me, I feel like they can put out MUCH better music than this. Obituaries is by far the best track, because it has that anthemic Menzingers feel to it, but pretty much everything else, aside from a few great lyrical spots or hooks, is bland to me. Listened to it a lot, putting it away now. excellent. I thought that this record complimented "Chamberlain Waits" quite nicely. And though they've progressed since "A Lesson In The Abuse of Information Technology" I feel like the things that originally defined this band still resonate in their sound. I also have to disagree with "Breaded" on the "Ava House" track. The energetic rise in the vocals adds to the emotion of the song which this record is obviously laced with. Lots of warm feelings and great songs here. I just feel like it might be a tad ostentatious and overrated. I still really like it and it grows on me more every time I listen. I cannot stand when people come to an album review page and troll like Echosmyron. If you do not like this album awesome. Let people type how they feel. Are you that enammerred with your own opinion that you have to make other people feel like shit for how they feel about something!? You need to find some self esteem and realize it does not matter how cool you seem or look by the bands you like. Great you like a certain style of music and the Menzingers do not fit that. Why does it matter if everyone knows that? Got a case of small dick syndrome? Or did your parents not show you enough attention as a child!? Listen to Rivalries for instance It grew on me with time, and the first three songs are really really good. However, it just isn't nearly anywhere as good as Chamberlain Waits. I have the new album playing on Spotify all the time, and once they run out and CW comes on, it just reiterates the point. Every so often an album comes out that hits me at the perfect time. 2008 it was Gaslight Anthems '59 Sound, in 2009 it was Manchester Orchestra's Mean Everything to Nothing, and this year it's On the Impossible Past. So fucking good. I kind of get tired of listening after On The Impossible Past (song), but this album is quite good. Chamberlain Waits was better. I personally think it's their best record yet. It may be laid back, but that's what I like most about it. Just because it doesn't sound like D4 doesn't mean it's not a great record. P.S. I love D4, I just think most of you people are pieces of shit. I mean come on, you voted Bomb The Music Industry as your favorite record of 2011.... What? I think I know what the guy meant by "Pretentious" review of this album? I don't think he literally meant your review was that stunning that it was actually "Pretentious" he meant the fact that you actually think that and you type it it the comments " i'm still waiting for someone to explain to me bla blah blah" is s he actually means your such a pretentious fuckin douchbag that you actually would do that. your another one don't shit about punk rock Not diggin' it bro. How am I supposed to punk out with my orgcore dudes with music this laid-back? Love the album, not crazy about Ava House and the song On the Impossible Past. I thought that based on listening to The Obituaries so early that most of the songs would be like it so I was thrown off a bit. Other than that 4.5/5. Doesn't top Hold On, Dodge or Chamberlain Waits, but still a solid album. Solid all the way through; their best album yet. Lyrically, I really like it. Musically, just falls on its side for me. Not as urgent as I had hoped. really like the record. but from my download code. is there a little too long of a gap between Impossible past and Nice things? feels like there should be no gap.. I like it a lot - it's a fun album to get into About what I expected. Much like their last album, it has a few truly stellar tracks (this time it's "Good Things", "Burn After Writing", "The Obituaries", and "Sun Hotel") and a whole bunch of disappointing, generic filler. I don't want to be too negative about it, because I like those four songs so much and have been listening to them incessantly, but it is really frustrating when a band starts off so strong and then can't maintain that quality for the whole album. I mean, this is like a radio band's album back in the '90s. Some awesome singles in a sea of mediocrity. I don't know why other bands plan on releasing new music this year. Nothing's going to be able to top this. "Beer is terrible." Glad everybody fed the Echos troll. Good job. Terrible album. Beer is terrible. Hey Breaded, You are still wrong. Nice Things is sung by Tom not Greg. Take your time and hit the (Preview) button before you post stuff. Especially an entire review. Aside from The Obituaries and a few hooks here and there, I can't get into it. Good lord. I came in here to say that I don't think this is nearly as good as their other two records. Instead I find the walls smeared with shit, and of course, EchosMyron is sitting in the middle of floor, dick in hand, soaked in his own tears. Of course, now I feel completely stupid for not expecting it. I just wanna see a GBV ultimate playlist in every article. Pretty damn good. Fuck, this is even better than I was expecting. "Nice Things" is the best song they've ever written. Can't really believe I'm saying this, but I'm extremely disappointed. It's got some good ones, but as a whole it seems to be lacking something. Lyrics are pretty good, but the music in general could have been written by just about any other band. Also, I believe you mistakingly gave it a 9. Gah, so many lyrical errors. Lowered my expectations but still very disappointing Shit band. wow, these comments bring back all the fond memories of My Chemical Romance, Aiden, Falloutboy, scene core reviews and the anonymous postings from the kids. i think a lot of those reviews were from achors which i loved reading. they brought the lolz. So much emphasis put on Tom May...when Greg sings most of the songs and he's fucking amazing. Album of the year, I'm thinking. We'll see if I'm proven wrong. "Only on this site could you be taken seriously by other users after stating something like that. But you've proven many times how much of an assclown you are, as well as how terrible your taste in music is, so your comments don't hold any weight." *insulted Since someone brought up/insilted Guided by Voices for no reason at all, I thought I'd repost my ultimate GbV/Uncle Bob playlist to point out how many great songs he and Tobin Sprout have written. I guess I need to check out this new Classics of Love record. Only on this site could you be taken seriously by other users after stating something like that. But you've proven many times how much of an assclown you are, as well as how terrible your taste in music is, so your comments don't hold any weight. Great album, and a much better band than Guided By Voices. @oldpunkerforever like I said, just barely. I'm not super into that hardcore or whatever sound Classics of Love does (and don't care to debate what it is), so it took me a bit to really get into it. Anyway, there's still a whole 8 months for CoL to come out on top for me and either way, I'm really into both of these albums. "Oh, but you are wrong. It's one thing to enjoy this thing as guilty-pleasure music (like I enjoy NUFAN nowadays), but to say it's one of the best and most important albums of 2012 is objectively wrong." The two best punk albums of the year so far are the Mind Spider's Meltdown and the Sonic Avenues' self-titled. I'm not sure if the Cloud Nothings' Attack on Memory can be regarded as a proper punk album, but if so, it rounds out my top three. I can't offer any deep insight, but deeply disappointed as I was with a lot of Chamberlain Waits, what I've heard of this is good stuff. Good review too. skavoovee, this beats out Classics of Love?? now I have heard it all. I want to add that the new No Trigger smokes the new " zingers" out of the water, easy. For me, COL and NT are neck and neck for punk cd of the year ( I know, its only feb but come on) I play those 2 back to back and I cannot get enough-oldpunker- The Hold Steady are very good at that kind of storytelling, actually. But yeah, besides them, blah. i think he's saying "should," not "must," regarding all good things and what they do Oh, but you are wrong. It's one thing to enjoy this thing as guilty-pleasure music (like I enjoy NUFAN nowadays), but to say it's one of the best and most important albums of 2012 is objectively wrong. It's ok I guess ...some good songs, but I feel like i've heard this style a million times now. I don't really get all the hype. Classics of love ST is a much better record overall It's ok I guess ...some good songs, but I feel like i've heard this style a million times now. I don't really get all the hype. Classics of love ST is a much better record overall echos.. pretentious - characterized by assumption of dignity or importance. every time you don't like an album or band, you make a 1000 posts detailing your disdain, not only describing why the music sucks, but why we suck as well for enjoying said music. it's one thing to have an opinion, but when declaring yours, you always seem to slip in the part of how everyone else is wrong.. it's that annoying sense of smug importance... pretentious. It's good, but when listening to the whole album I keep hearing "AMERICAN MUSCLE CAR" over and over and over again. It's in at least 3 songs. Why not just call the album AMERICAN MUSCLE CAR and be done with it? Again, no one has been able to explain what was pretentious about my brief summation of this album. PS: Echos Myron you are a pretentious dick, and calling this the '59 Sound Part Two is a compliment (even though they sound nothing alike). So good, but I think I might like CW more but I don't its really damn close. i don't know this band or this record yet, but i became interested in it due to the undeniably-existing hype that surrounds it. reading through the comments below, i affirm that there is certainly a "cheap" way to approach making songs accessible. but at the same time, i'd love for some of these miserable, anxious-to-shit-on-everyone-successfull know-it-alls to spell out for me exactly what it means to create something catchy and accessible that ALSO meets the criteria for "legitimately creative". trying so fucking hard to draw that kind of a line in an area that's so subjective to the listener in this way just makes it clear that the objective is way more to "one up" everyone who is finding something good in a band...and trying to marginalize the fuck out of the band and their alleged intentions (see: major label prognostication). i may wind up agreeing with the negative criticism of this record. but i mean, i find the "genius" that other people find in matt skiba's "alcohol n' corpses" lyrics to be rather gimmicky - at the same time i don't linger around websites when new alkaline trio records come out just to shit all over everyone stroking him off. Echos is a pretentious jerkoff, but also correct. This album isn't terrible outright, but it is pretty bland and predictable. The hype train around here needs to slow down a bit. It's an unbelievably good album. Great effort. 5*'s. I have a law exam tomorrow though, so I'm ignoring 'the obituaries' for now... Of all the big records coming out today, this is my least favorite, and it's still fantastic. This album is great. So far it's my favorite of the year, only barely beating out the Classics of Love self-titled. Like many others mentioned, Nice Things is a crucial track on this album, but I do kind of agree with you about Ava House. If the songwriting is creative and original, there's nothing wrong with making your songs more accessible. Jawbreaker sold out with Dear You, but songs like "Accident Prone" and "Basilica" were so transcendent that it didn't matter. On first listen, I really like this, and I can't wait to spend more time with it. It's no CW, but those were some mighty big shoes to fill. So this album took a few listens, but after listening to it in one piece I definitely appreciate it a lot more. I think it's funny when people complain about bands going soft or selling out or whatever. Bands change their sound all the time. After their last record, I'm not at all surprised with the way this came out. I still give it 5/5. nice review. agreed a lot I don't mean this album, never heard it or the band. I'm sure it's good if the majority of the same ol douchbags are knocking it. And the bid to get signed by warner bros comment, whoever made that one you'd be the first one with the fucking pen in your hand if you were ever in there situation I love coming to this laughing stock of a site when i need a good laugh. I love all the authorties on here that this one isn't punk enough and that is too power pop and blah blah. It's so funny cause 99% on here don't know the first thing about punk rock if it was beat into you! You guys don't know shit, go back and read some these comments, they will make you cringe. Fucking Posers @EchosMyron: Favorite songs so far: "Burn after writing", "Casey" and "Gates" Wasn't that impressed after the first listen, but it seems like it could be a grower. ""Mexican Guitars" is not only the best song on the album, it's also the greatest song the Menzingers have ever written" @Baked Toast This is the kind of record that, in addition to being what I feel is their best work, seems to add depth and meaning to their entire discography. It defines the Menzingers as a band and is the kind of record that deserves to be seen as a sort of period piece for the sub-culture from which it sprang. 5 stars, damnit! Disclaimer: sorry to everyone who actually wanted to discuss the record. My bad for feeding Echos ego. This is a great record, but I'm holding off on giving an official rating until I've had more time to spend with it. My comment wasn't directed at your critique in particular, more toward you just being a generally shitty, negative person that spends WAY too much time on a site dedicated to music you apparently loathe so much. Nobody enjoys your commentary, and not because it differs, but because you're a self-aggrandizing, contrarian dickwad. Get lost. didn't like it as much as the previous album initially but it's a grower. best song is probably casey. definitely an early contender for album of the year Power pop didn't end in '79, but most of the bands I'd call power pop that came after (Teenage Fanclub come to mind) are heavily influenced by bands like Big Star. Don't hear much of that in this album. Lots of people read this site, so I think the standard of the reviews should be a little bit higher than taking each song and giving us your personal opinion on it. "Nice Things" is great, btw but my favorite Tom song on the album is "Sculptors and Vandals". I like the new direction, love seeing good bands evolve and change. Shout out to Tigers Jaw that is* I like the shout out to Mexican Guitars. "I did what I did to get away from this, cause everything that's happened has left me a total wreck...Everything that I do know is meaningless" These are basically the opening lines to Buona Pizza on Two Worlds. Also Tom reuses hits up his acoustic song on I was Born single.. "these days you'll find me where the nectar is plenty. looks are cheap and the talk is heavy" All of which are "good things" from the past. Power pop didn't end in 1979. Maybe I was being too kind in calling the Menzingers power pop, though. Perhaps pop rock is the ideal classification for their music, since this is most definitely their bid to get signed to a major label. None of these reviews ever mention Art Of Pizza. That's bullshit. These guys just write the best hooks. I don't care if its punk or not. Plain and simple these are pop songs. They're just incredibly well constructed melodies with just the right amount of power behind them. Its not like its never been done before, but they're doing it better than most. It'll take a little while to know for sure, but right now I'm pretty sure this is their best work. Hold On Dodge might still be the best. 'EchosMyron is a pretenscious dick. The menzingers are not. Album rules" I hate when people call this kind of music power pop, and I love the Menzingers AND power pop. Its not 1979, the Menzingers aren't ripping off the Records or Big Star. This is more along the lines of straight up pop punk meets 90s pop rock. Its a great album because its coherent and provokes real feelings in me. This review is fucking awful. I like this album a lot. Had high expactations after CW (my personal favorite album of the last few years). Sure, they are slower, but that doesnīt mean weaker. Awesome record. Best tracks: Gates, Mexican Guitars, I canīt seem to tell I find the second half a little lacking in comparison to the first, but I might just need a few more listens for them to sink in. That said, there are some really great songs here, especially Gates which reminds me way too much of myself 6-7 years ago EchosMyron is a pretenscious dick. The menzingers are not. Album rules This album is great. This review is not. Partly because Nice Things is the best, most crucial song on the album and the reviewer says it could have been cut, and partly because it goes through track-by-track rather than looking at the album as a whole, something crucial with most albums, but especially this one. and the award for saggiest tits in album cover history goes to...........................The 'zingers I thought this was a well written review. I'm not sure if Tom May sings on the title track or if that is Greg though. Interesting you don't like "Nice Things", most people I've talked to the past month feel that segway (between "On The Impossible Past" and "Nice Things") is the best part of the album. "So go the lyrics on the opening track. . ." CW was better, this, for which I have been listening to for a few days now just does not do it for me. I understand a band should grow, but what happened to all the hooks?. It all seems a bit slow ( not that there is anything wrong w that per say) just not for these guys, its like harnessing this energy that needs to come out, that never does. Oh well, there is always next time-oldpunker- Great record, but Mexican Guitars in not their greatest songe eva. It's not even the best song on this record. Gates is. This week on Dave's "Four or More Club - The weekly post where I tell you what records get a 4 or more out of 5. Quite brilliant. Nice to see bands that continue to impress, and not disappoint. Twelve thumbs up Not as good as Chamberlain Waits. But still good. So far I'm enjoying this one a lot more than Chamberlain Waits, which I found good but a little disappointing. Prettty, Prettaayyy, Good! |
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despite only being a year old, this record's been with me through a lot of things. Definitely my favorite of 2012, probably going to be one I look back on as a fond reflection of my youth in ten to twenty years. Vocals and hooks are incredible.