I got a huge kick out of Blood for Blood's Outlaw Anthems, but all the same never really gave Serenity a chance when it came out. Anyway, a month or so back I overheard a bit of the song "Hangin' on the Corner" and thought it was solid as fuck.
As it turns out, "Hangin' on the Corner" is an awesome song. I think if Irvine Welsh quit writing novels and instead chose to write lyrics for Blood for Blood, the product would be pretty close to this. (In other words, it's got lyrics about kids ODing, families falling apart, and living on the street). Musically, it sounds like Outlaw Anthems if Outlaw Anthems had lots of poppy vocal parts, although they do mix it up a little more at times. About the lyrics to "Hangin' on the Corner"...they seem a little over the top, but if I'm in the right mood I can take it pretty seriously. It's just so far from old Blood for Blood that I get confused sometimes. The repeated shouts of "WE CARE!" are a bit of a change from "Fucking your pussy was like fucking the wound from a shotgun blast, with gangrene" and other such lyrical gems from their previous effort.
If every track on Serenity sounded just like "Hangin' on the Corner" I'd love this shit. Sadly, with only 7 tracks, two of which are practically the same 30-second song, one of which boasts the chorus about how the dude just "gotta gotta got to save my soul" and reminds me of "Gonna Rock Around the Clock," and a couple throwaways -- well, I'm a little let down. Oh, but I oughtta mention that the 30-second song that opens and closes the EP is good. Oh shit, and I also ought to mention how stoked on Jesus these guys have gotten. The first thing you hear is the Serenity prayer that people recite for Alcoholics Anonymous and there's a few shoutouts to JC scattered throughout. Some kids might have a problem with that; I say to each his own.
Long story short: Kind of a mediocre release, but I know they still have it in 'em to put out some amazing shit down the road. If you've never listened to Blood for Blood before, I'd say go check out the aforementioned Outlaw Anthems before this one. However, if you have heard them before, don't rag on me for saying Outlaw Anthems and not Wasted Youth Brew or one of the older releases. I'm not retarded, I don't think Outlaw Anthems is their only album or their only good one. It just happens to be my favorite. Deal with it.