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Agent

I Wouldn't Trade That for Anything (2006)
Iron Pier

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Contributed by: Ben_Conoley
(others by this writer | submit your own)

Published on November 28th 2006

Well I’ll be damned if I shouldn’t just up and move to Long Island tomorrow. If I wasn’t afraid of telling my parents that I dropped out of college to go live in one of the most exciting musical locales in America I just might do it.

Who are we kidding here, that’s a lie. I’d be afraid to tell my mother I skipped class, let alone dropped out to mosh. But if I just had to move anywhere, Long Island would be right up there, partially due to the music coming out of it, and Agent is no exception.

It would be easy to slam Agent on sounding a lot like their influences -- mainly Lifetime, Braid, and early Saves the Day -- if they didn’t wear them so proudly on their sleeves. Agent’s proper debut EP, I Wouldn’t Trade That for Anything is in all likelihood the best melodic hardcore album you’ll hear this year. Agent’s music sounds similar to their hometown friends Latterman, but vocally they come off sounding a lot more like the aforementioned influences creating an unexpectedly refreshing blend.

With only five songs clocking in at just over 13 minutes, I Wouldn’t Trade That for Anything seems to rush by all too quickly, unfortunately. “Anywhere Is Better Than Here” comes in tied with the EPs last song, “Too Close for Comfort,” as the album’s best tracks. Both songs share relentless energy and shout-along chorus opportunities. The second and third songs, “I’m Fucking Sick of People Leaving and Not Saying Goodbye” and “Trying My Best,” respectively, are good enough in their own right, but come off a little rushed, with the former being only a minute long. To the band’s credit, they’re heavier songs and work well enough within the time given, but Agent is clearly able to write songs over three minutes and still convey the same kind of urgency and energy.

Lyrically, I Wouldn’t Trade That for Anything focuses on being stuck either with yourself and your decisions you’ve made or the city you live in. However, optimism comes through towards the end when on “Too Close for Comfort,” vocalist Keith Pilson sings, “Ideas are being realized / We’re human beings, we can find something new to see, or say something not said / Tomorrow is a brand new day, and I’m through with sleeping where I lay.” Plus, any band that has lyrics about the virtues of bike rides automatically get a big thumbs up from me, but Agent doesn’t even need that kind of crutch to win in my books.

I Wouldn’t Trade That for Anything is a stunning debut that deserves to be in your collection.

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robyourselfblind (February 3, 2008)

take it from someone who lives here, the long island scene blows.

there are a minority of good bands like your agents, crime in stereos, etc.

The thing is, for ever single one of the good bands we have here, there are about 250 horrible bands that all look the same, sound the same, and induce the same taste of vomit in my mouth.

the scene where exciting new music was coming out here died quite a long time ago, probably about the time brand new put out their first album.

that being said, this album is pretty sick.

Anonymous (December 18, 2006)

onegirlarmy (December 18, 2006)

Wow, this drummer is HORRIBLE. They would be pretty sweet if they had a solid rhythm section.

They're young kids, he's probably still learning. Geez, calm down.

Anonymous (December 11, 2006)

"very li" fuck you when is ripping off a bunch of non-LI bands a good thing and when does it allow you to call it LI? fuck 'em

Anonymous (December 8, 2006)

"this band is so awesome. the tall guitar player is really hot. i'd really like him to devirginize me. i havent been with a guy since coming out of the closet. i'd like him to be my first" It's people like you who should never, ever be allowed to look at punknews.org. Fucking annoying transparent kids like you are the bane of all existence.

rearanged3 (December 5, 2006)

the move to long island thing is simply so stupid

BisonChris (December 4, 2006)

fuck long island

FishBulb (November 30, 2006)

Score is for wanting to move to Long Island. Seriously, just b/c there's a small handful of decent bands, doesn't mean the scene here is amaizng. In fact, it's pretty fucking bad, with all the Brand New/TBS carbon copies. And the metalcore...God, the metalcore!

Anonymous (November 30, 2006)

Wow, this drummer is HORRIBLE. They would be pretty sweet if they had a solid rhythm section.

Anonymous (November 30, 2006)

Orange?

Anonymous (November 30, 2006)

suprisingly awesome. i loves me some well placed off-pitch singing. seriously.

-mybulldogfront

Anonymous (November 30, 2006)

this band is so awesome. the tall guitar player is really hot. i'd really like him to devirginize me. i havent been with a guy since coming out of the closet. i'd like him to be my first

Anonymous (November 29, 2006)

one of the best bands

randomhero323 (November 29, 2006)

this band is so fucking good.

Anonymous (November 29, 2006)

This band is great and i am pumped to see them in albany. i also gave it a good review.

pipedown (November 28, 2006)

this band is amazing
honestly so good