 
PennywiseFrom The Ashes (2003)Epitaph Records Reviewer Rating: User Rating: Contributed by: FortyMinutesWest (others by this writer | submit your own) Published on September 9th 2003 Everyone has an opinion on Pennywise. You should could probably ask some homeless guy on the street what he thought of this band and he would have an answer, he might also stab you, so that’s probably not a very good idea. I know most of you didn’t actually come to read the review; you came to say “Pennywise! This sounds like Pennywise! All their songs sound the same! HAHA! BRO!” But some of us still like this band. Let me take you back, way back to 1996. I was still in junior high back then; I don’t even know what I was listening to at the time, Soundgarden or one of those bands. I would still listen to the radio to find “good music”, even though I hated 99% of what I heard. “What’s with all this love song bullshit? These bands have nothing to say.” One day I was browsing through the local music store when I saw an album that I had never seen there before. “Pennywise? Hey, that’s the clown from ‘IT’. Wow! It has a bomb on it! I need to get this now!” I walked up to the cashier, threw down the money I had saved from cutting grass and went home to hear my newly purchased album, “About Time”. From the first chords of “Peaceful Day” I was hooked, I had never heard a band play so fast and with so much passion. Their lyrics actually touched on things that interested me, doubts about religion, politics, personal struggles, etc. I would later purchase “Full Circle”, “Unknown Road”, “Pennywise”, and “Wild Card/A Word From The Wise” all of which I listened to virtually non-stop. But some time in between the release of “Full Circle” and “Straight Ahead” I grew up. I still liked “Straight Ahead”, but it didn’t move me in the way that their rest of their material did. “Land Of Free” was met with a lukewarm reaction from me at best, at worst I realized that I had outgrown this band that they had little to offer me anymore. I felt bad, but at the same time “Fuck Authority” is an awful song and I couldn’t believe that this was the same band that had evoked such feelings from me in the past. That sure was a lot of rambling. “From The Ashes” still sounds like Pennywise, but there are little intricacies that set this one apart from their past couple of albums. The acoustic guitar on “This Is Only a Test of The Emergency Broadcast System”, the piano on “Yesterday” (I know they’ve used piano before, but it was only as an intro or an outro), there are also some atypical riffs and more vocal harmonies than were present in the past, these are all new things. Of course you won’t be able to see any of this if you aren’t willing to look past the stigma of it being Pennywise. The lyrical content deals with personal problems as well as politics, but the political lyrics seem less contrived than they did on “Land of the Free”. Thankfully, there’s no song that is as brick-to-the-head blunt as “Fuck Authority”. The closest thing on here in terms of having that vibe is “Rise Up”, consequently, it is my least favorite song on the album. “Holiday In The Sun” is another fairly mediocre track that sounds like it was rightfully left on the cutting room floor during the Land of the Free” sessions. Luckily, the rest of album solid and some of the songs even hold up to the band’s older material. Unlike the band’s older work however, the best song on here (at least in my opinion) is the slowest. The melodic sing along “Yesterdays” has been stuck in my head since the first time I heard it. This is no small feat, as no Pennywise song has been able to accomplish this since “Full Circle”. The band hasn’t forgotten how to play fast skate punk though, as showcased by songs like “Now I Know”. That is, after all what they are, a skate punk band that plays fast. They’ve never claimed to be anything more. Nonetheless, there are some differences here. The acoustic guitar on “This Is Only A Test of The Emergency Broadcast System” really caught me off guard. Jim’s vocal carry this song, as he showcases my more melody than we’re used to hearing from him.
So yes, it’s Pennywise, yet it isn’t rehashed. There are clear differences here, you can listen and realize this, or you can ignore it and complain after never listening it. The choice is really yours. If this album accomplished anything, it made me pull out “About Time” and “Full Circle” again. Who knows, maybe some kid in some boring, middle of nowhere town will come across this in a record store and it will open the door to a whole world of music he never even knew existed.
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stop saying that its the same thing over and over agian people. this album sounds completely different than anything theyve ever done. its their most melodic record shit yeah ok, punknews is offically made up of people who don't like punk or music in general. just ones who need some way to get their pre-pubescent agnst out. salvation, holiday in the sun are not that good. "now i know" is very well delivered but is liricaly lazy. Anyway, something to change, god save the usa and rise up are very good. pennywise are the kings this is my fav band. and this is my fav album from pennywise, i cant believe how much hate they are getting, they represent everything i love about punk rock, and are the starters of good skate punk music, Pennywise is good. Pennywise is good. Pennywise may be repetitive, but I still like their music. This record is decent, but has little replay value. This is a great band to see live, and none of their records truley capture the excitement of being at a Pennywise show. This is an alright album, and these songs are an awesome addition to their live set. The song "yesterdays" is a killer song. A 7... HUGE pennywise fan, but this does not compare to about time and full circle... trust me! This is a geat band. I love this disc. If you don't, you are straight up over analyzing it. Get a grip. a while down, someone said something about the cover art... IT IS FUCKING ANNOUYING LOOKING, i have a skate deck with the cover art on it, i still fucking hate the art work, lame shit to match a lame album, even a bonus dvd couldnt bring this shithole out of the garbage, this is yet another example of bands where you have to 'cut them off' after a bad album (ie land of the free) and ignore anything they release after that, or else you'll be dissapointed This is a geat band. I love this disc. If you don't, you are straight up over analyzing it. Get a grip. I finally heard the entire album just a couple days ago, and I think it's about time for the boys in PW to call it quits. This seems to be quite the sub-par effort and is just lacking something as a whole. Maybe I've just grown up and realized saying fuck the government over and over doesn't change anything. That's what's really bothered me with PW in the past couple years. You hear thier songs and they are fairly anti-government/system/authority, but they don't do anything about it. They just sit back and enjoy the fact that 14 year olds thin kit's cool to own every PW cd and at least 3 items of PW clothes. It's seriously time for them to hang it up, they are starting to get haggard! If you enjoy suck, There's nothing better than this album . . . this album is great. probably better lyrically than Land of the Free, but alittle slower also. But its still good ol' Pennywise. and Fletcher is crazy. i havent heard the cd so dont bother looking at my score... serious dudes... pennywise are the heart and were the start of punk rock... these guys rock and still rock... all u guys who think they are plain dono wot punk is... pennywise rock... this album continues their great style... "wow... doesn't seem to take much to get you to buy an alblum." from the ashes is a great album! the songs are awsome! First and foremost, ignore my album rating, for I have not yet heard the album, other than the one song I DLed. This is more a commentary on the band itself. I'm ignorant and hapless because I disagree with you, good call buddy. Guys, didn't you know? If you want to be punk, you can't like Pennywise. "Its still sounds like Pennywise but it isn't rehashed." The new CD SUCKS!!!! i bet you'd buy 10 copies of a cd if it had a fat cock and a glory hole on the cover. This is not a punk web site, it reminds me more of the real world. All these little biatches if you have a grudge against pennywis witch most of you do you can review the record. Its completely biast. This CD is dope nothing out of the ordinary from pennywise but when I listened to it closely some songs really hit me. Its a good record. "Better than Land of the Free, but not quite on par with Straight Ahead, which looks to me like their last full-on effort. Full Circle and About Time wont ever be beaten though. Granted the new records sucks! when i hear pink floyd, i want to smoke a huge bowl. You guys bitch about this Cd more than you bitched about crap like Good Charlotte, the Transplants or half the trendy emo shit out there. This CD may not be the best this year or even the top 10 (what with this year being such a great year for music thus far), but it is a good, solid PW album...better than the last two and with some really PW classics. People who listen to shitty emo and protooled scream music have no business talking shit about PW. Sure they have alot of stupid, jock surfer fans.....but do stupid fans define a band? You morons, that would mean that Black Flag were asshole cause they had skinheads at their shows. You guys need to take the chip off your shoulder and use your head. "Forty, you were in jr. high in 96'? Man, I graduated in 97', thanks for making me feel old, fucker." Personally I could really give a shit about this record or any other of PW's records. About Time is sooo good. I wish I were 14 again, Pennywise were my favourite band, along with Bad religion and Nofx. The other two have stood the test of time slightly better than ol' PW This gets my vote for shittiest CD of 2003! Avenged Sevenfolsd is a very close second! It's on par with Straight Ahead. hey forty, when in November do you turn 20? I turn 20 on the 12th, if you do to we should throw an online birthday party for the both of us(wussemorock IS NOT invited)! "That is, after all what they are, a skate punk band that plays fast. They’ve never claimed to be anything more." this review was lame, it didn't have anything good on why i should buy it. what a waste of time reading it. and pennywise is a good band who gives a rats ass if their stuff sounds the same, they deliver a strong message threw all of their songs that some bands or people can't even acomplish in a life time. "...but i listen to loads of old DC stuff too, like Mineral, Christie Front Drive, Still Life, Naveo Forge, Fugazi, Rites of Spring, Embrace" Forty, you were in jr. high in 96'? Man, I graduated in 97', thanks for making me feel old, fucker. Thanx Adam!!!! - but, by the way, I submitted the review before their album was released... Better than Land of the Free, but not quite on par with Straight Ahead, which looks to me like their last full-on effort. Full Circle and About Time wont ever be beaten though. The bonus DVD is a joke! i got into Pennywise back when Fletcher was thin! no one has mentioned the free dvd this comes with. one of the most boring half hours of my life was spent watching this. thanks a lot guys. i love ur music, but i can go without watching fletcher barf in other guys hair. woah pennywise came out with a new cd... where the hell have i been! I got into Pennywise back in '98 when I was a Freshmen is High School and I'm still into them. Also, this CD is great. ehh, i got into PW back in 97 when i was a sophomore in highschool. they sounded alot better back then cuz i only knew of a handful of other punk bands. to much has evolved in punk since then, the bar raised too high. they're fun to listen to for an old school kick, but it doenst do for me what it used to. full circle is still the best. this one is about on par w/ the last release. the review def. over exaggerates the changes in their sound. it aint much different if ya ask me. Fuck mate this really really SUCKS the big one.............. Eh, I liked Land of the Free?, and I'm sure I'll like this one, too. land of the free? was the last life pennywise had in them. unless they try to stop imitating bad religion and try to find their own way i don't see how this band can continue to appeal in the same way it did 8 years ago Whatever happened to that one kid who everybody hated...what was his name again...wussemorock? Havent seen him in ages...did he die I heard Full Circle in '97, and my colostomy bag filled with a rich, yellow liquid. Six years later, this album isn't lookin' so hot. And I have sex with farm animals. Discuss. Pennywise can SUCK it! This album is pretty good. I wasn't expecting any amazing political thought from this band, but at least they get somewhat back to the personal side of the songwriting spectrum. This CD is better than Land of the Free, on par or better than Straight Ahead, but still can't hold a candle to the Unknown Road through Full Circle stuff. I haven't listened to it enough to get a final impression (I also got Articles of Faith Complete vol. 2 which has seen much more play time today), but I appreciate the fact that they tried to branch out musically within their range. that's the worst cover art, ever. yeah, ever. "Pennywise" is about as interesting as "Brand New." land of the free was a good album and actually my fave pennywise album.....i like it more than the others. From the Ashes is my second fave too. I actually like the newer stuff...its good. PENNYWISE IS MY 3RD FAVORITE BAND EVER!!!! behind bowling for soup and cauterize!!! so let me get this straight, if you like pennywise your a stupid punk, or a jock, and if you dont like them your a "whiny emo kid who doesnt know what good music is". PEnnywise I like this album..forty..you were still in junior high back in 96?..I feel old This album is alright. It's listenable, yet not something I would spend money on. Janelle: The Havok review is in the queue still and should be posted soon. These last few weeks have had a ton of new releases out so the other stuff in the queue has been pushed back. "SCOTT!!!! Pennywise! This sounds like Pennywise! All their songs sound the same! HAHA! BRO! Most of the people commenting on this are gay emo kids that wouldn't know good music if it hit them in the face. Sure all of Pennywise's cds sound the same but thats the style that they have made for themselves and thats fine. The lyrics are what really make this cd. I like the 2 songs ive heard and I probably will buy this NOFX is a billion times more tired and mundane than PW, but I never see anyone jumping to point that out. Not that NOFX don't have good lyrics, but the music DOES NOT change....boring shit. And all the emo shit is the same shit, being copied by a milliopn other trendy, spur of the moment bands looking for riches. Pennywise may not be the best band out there, but they sure as hell deserve alot more respect than they get. Secondly, what's with this sudden "its cool to hate PW" attitude? If I recall when LOF was first released this site was full of praises....now people who at that time said they loved it are jumping on the trendy bandwagon.....what a disgrace. Anyway, I think this album is good, its no about time or unknown road (their masterpeice)....but it certainly has its fair share of great songs......not even close to best album of the year...but better than half the shit released recently. Totaly fucking redeemed themselves. The chills on the back of my neck in the opening seconds proved it. I bash people who say "Pennywise sounds the same" or "They say Bro alot, I'm hillarious" over and over again. Well talk about full circle. This band is so bad that it's ok to like them again. People getting bashed for pointing out a band sucks when the deserve it? The justification for liking this band is weak. Other than "Hey, I just have bad taste and can't progress." " “Pennywise? Hey, that’s the clown from ‘IT’. Wow! It has a bomb on it! I need to get this now!” I walked up to the cashier, threw down the money I had saved from cutting grass and went home to hear my newly purchased album, “About Time”." I heard God save the USA, and I prefer to dismiss it as being more boring pennywise instead of listening to the rest of the record. i am pleasantly surprised by this album. From Ashes Rise - Nightmares will be the best album with "Ashes" in the title this year, but buying the Pennywise album is my bi-yearly ritual I refuse to break, even if they've been geting worse and worse. "If you like pennywise, you will you like this albumn. If you dont like Pennywise, odds are you wont" Normally I'm used to putting on a new Pennywise cd and getting all hyped up from the very first track....well this one wasn't like that, in fact I think the first track is lame...there are some good ol' Pennywise tunes on this cd but overall I think the guitars recording is weak....it just doesn't have that loud crisp bite that you normally get from Fletcher. hmmm...i'm a bit torn. i love pennywise, but their last 3 albums have failed to *move* me like their previous efforts. i miss the balls to the wall tempo mostly...sure, there's a few fast ones on here, but jim sings pretty mid-paced even if the songs are speedy. where's the spit-in-your-face aggression man? sing it like ya mean it. "The Dismemberment Plan just broke up, yet this band is still making records." Hey Scott, my girlfriend sucked 37 dicks i dont understand why the majority of you emo or indie rock fags always diss pennywise? probally cause they are good, have a message and arent whiny emo fags What is wrong with the cover art?? It reminds me a lot of old Dead Kennedys stuff. The Dismemberment Plan just broke up, yet this band is still making records. god damn, the way you described buying "About Time", is EXACTLY how I bought it, during the summer of 96. talk about weird. i like to toss a guy's salad. should i tell my parents? oh and pennywise is cool. Why do so many punk bands have fixations with ashes nowadays? It's almost as if nobody wants to burn shit anymore, but is content just to show up after something burns..."look at these ashes, that must have been some fire!" I think this is a good album. The one thing I like most about Pennywise is their consistency, they don't throw too many musical curveballs at their fans. So, musically, I enjoyed it just as I have all of their previous material. Pfffhh i liked Straight Ahead and Land Of The Free. I've heard a few tracks off this album, Holidays In The Sun is admittedly a bit shit but God Save The USA which they played live when i saw em recently sounded really good. Goofy as cover art gets. Repetitive as music gets. Shitty as bands get. I agree w/ the dude above.....the cover art is aweful. Pennywise never really did a good job in terms of their artwork. Oh great now these assholes are getting in with the stupid run-on sentences also...... From ashes rise, from autumn to ashes, rise from ashes, from the ashes, ashes in my butthole. Yes, the cover art is stupid. I knew I wasn't the only one who thought Land of the Free was too politically contrived. This is what it feels like when doves cry. This album is pretty much a return to form after land of the free gets thumbs up from me... But whats up with just mentioning the 'about time' album cos 'Unknown road' owns that cd! About time was my first Pennywiesse album too! I still like it now after all this time. Having been totally put off by the crapness of Straight Ahead and the trying-too-hard-to-be-political Land of the Free I can't see myself buying this unless it's in a bargain bin. SCOTT!!!! "If you like pennywise, you will you like this albumn. If you dont like Pennywise, odds are you wont." about time isn't their only good cd...full circle is amazing, and yes straight ahead and land of the free were awful Am I the only one who thinks that cover looks excrutiatingly dumb? Or maybe I'm dumb. yea about time was there only good cd and i just stumbled on it cuz i bought a back pack from this kid in school way back when that had speakers in it and he left the cd in it.. so i claimed it.. there live cd was good too but thats pretty much it I was a little put off by the out of key accordian solo by special guest musician, Al Yankovic, but all in all its a decent record. Plus, I think I might be gay. This album is pretty good except for when the band decided to go all "ska" on me. With the heavy christian overtones on this new release it made me Mosh for JESUS! This album has been ripped for about a month now...of course with all the other incredible albums lately I really haven't found the time to listen to this as I'm not the biggest Pennywise fan... Pennywise really need to call it a day. Pennywise got me into punk many, many years ago. And, although they are no longer my favorite band, they reserve a special place in my heart. This album is great, a nice change of pace from LOF (which I in fact liked). this album has been ripped for quite a while now.i have had it for about two and half weeks.its aiight.same ole pennywise.get boring after a few times through. The more albums sold = the more corn dogs for Fletcher and his countless amount of 30 year old hoochies. That man gets mad nasty gash. To the person who is first: we don't even know who you are so fuck you!! I have nearly the same story with Pennywise's albums except I bought "About Time" after my cousin gave me the "Godmoney" soundtrack which had "Peaceful Day" on it. Nope, it is ripped, as I got a copy of it yesterday. And yes, I am going to go purchase it tommorrow, I just really wanted to hear it before hand. :) I'm anxious to hear this now. Land of the Free was as lackluster to me as it was to you. | Features
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