Just when you start to think hardcore will never be what it used to be - perhaps permanently transformed from a positive youth movement into another trend for label execs to feast on and for hot topic kids to listen to in order to scare their parents - you hear an album like Turn it Around. 13 wonderful songs in a span of something like 28 minutes, and best of all, released just this March.

This band is from Canada and is apparently the side project of some members of Figure Four, who I haven't had the oppurtunity to hear, but who I know just got signed to SolidState. Hopefully this won't limit CBK's touring ability too much, because these songs need to be heard. Imagine a mixture of Kid Dynamite and Can We Start Again?-era Bane and maybe a little Stretch Armstrong - fast, melodic, positive, and heavy. Lyrics that are meant to be yelled along to, with guitar riffs that will make you want to get out of your car at red lights and dance in circles in between traffic. I honestly couldn't find one thing to complain about on this album.

It avoids all the pitfalls of hardcore; no predictable breakdowns or song structures; no two songs sound identical, and yet the album flows very well. The lead guitar manages to be catchy and rough at the same time; the rhythm is respectable, the bass lines are great, and the drums keep the time. The vocals are intense, pointed yells, not contrived screams; from the almost sing along quality in "Die Tonight" (highlight track in my opinion) to the gang vocals and occasional guest vocalists, there really isn't a weak point. There is no hidden acoustic track.

The songs are not all about the many different ways the lead singer has had his heart broken, although the cover art is a bit misleading. From what I can tell, most of them are about not selling yourself short and standing by the values you believe in - can't get much more hardcore than that, eh? The production is to the level where it doesn't sound too slick, but it doesn't sound like it was recorded in a public bathroom. All in all, the sound is aggressive without being abrasive.

I can't recommend this album enough.