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Forever Free: A Sublime Tribute Album
2006
Baseline

Various - Forever Free: A Sublime Tribute Album (Cover Artwork)


Review by: Anchors
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Published on January 12th 2007

Take a trip through any high school across America and you’re likely to see three things: men with bushy mustaches and bad suits, ugly girls wearing their little sisters clothes and swearing it fits, and kids in Sublime shirts. Liking Sublime is essentially a high school requisite, so long as you don’t want to see the shocked facial expression accompanied with “dude, are you serious right now?”

All kidding aside -- everyone’s heard Sublime. Not everyone likes them, but everyone’s heard their brand of reggae/punk/dub or whatever else people have classified it as. They’ve always been a pretty hit or miss band for me, and unfortunately, the memory of the late Bradley Nowell is not so much honored by this collection of misses.

Thrown together without any real big names (save No Use for a Name, Guttermouth, and the Voodoo Glow Skulls,) these 14 songs showcase not so much the style and variety brought to the table by Sublime, but the musical misgivings of those attempting the covers. My eyebrow was first raised at the complete absence of what’s arguably Sublime’s best recorded song, “Santeria.” How can you possibly have a Sublime tribute and not cover "Santeria?" “Wrong Way” and “Caress Me Down” are included, but after hearing those respective renditions I started to take on the viewpoint that maybe not even giving anyone the chance to muck up "Santeria" was for the best.

If I was hard-pressed to find a bright spot here, and trust me, that’s the exact situation that would need to take place for me to do so, it’d be Ballyhoo’s! cover of “40 Oz. to Freedom,” if for no other reason than they did little to alter the original. I realize that liberties have to be taken with cover songs, but most of these are so butchered that it’s beyond any possible state of repair.

"What I really wanna say, is there's just one way back, and I'll make it."

So long as I never hear this crap again.






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    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, July 25, 2007 at 1:54 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    This cd isnt terrible like it's made out to be. There are some good songs, notably: Badfish - NUFAN, Caress Me Down -VGS, Seed - Skeletones, and 40oz -Ballyhoo.

    Also, some of the weaker cuts have actually enhanced my appreciation for the real versions (Doin Time in particular).

    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, January 15, 2007 at 7:46 PM (EST)

    where can you see a tracklist?

    Posted by Dubar on 2007-01-15 15:05:26

    terrible terrible review. The only thing I learned about this album is that it exists and that you hate it. Why do you hate it? Because no one covered your favorite song. Cool.

    Posted by notfeelingcreative on 2007-01-14 23:58:17

    God forbid anyone like music that fratboys like! For the love of god, every complaint I've ever seen about sublime, pepper, the expendables, etc. is all about the meathead morons who listen to that stuff!

    Posted by rkl on 2007-01-12 13:06:13

    "Santeria" as Sublime's best song?
    HIgh school music?
    I dunno, maybe its different for me, since the S/T(Sublime's worst album, btw)came out when I was in high school.
    I've never had much interest in the various Sublime tribute albums, though, and this is no exception.

    Posted by strangenotes on 2007-01-12 12:47:41

    The soundtrack to Auschwitz.

    Posted by GlassPipeMurder on 2007-01-12 12:40:24

    that was called "Look at all the Love We Found" and also had Fishbone, Pennywise, and The Ziggens.

    Posted by sickboi on 2007-01-12 12:19:58

    I thought there was a Sublim tribute coming out with Avail doing Santeria?

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, January 12, 2007 at 11:06 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    Score is for the fucking terrible review. I know nothing more about the release, but I now know more about high school.

    Posted by GlassPipeMurder on 2007-01-12 03:15:28

    here are some things i think you should have mentioned in your review:

    1. Guttermouth's cover of April 29th, 1992 is hilarious.

    2. No Use for a Name does a beautiful job with Badfish...come on, at least give credit where credit is due.

    skeletones, forces of evil, 1208, nhoi are all no-name bands? i suppose if you haven't been around long or haven't paid attention..

    Posted by Cos on 2007-01-12 03:11:19

    Fuck this band

    Posted by Ianw on 2007-01-12 01:24:05

    White kid reggea is LAAAAAAAME.

    I couldent buy weed last year with out having to sit though at leat one Sublime or 311 song. Hell of weak.

    Posted by damnitsderek on 2007-01-12 01:10:11

    Isn't this like the fourth Sublime tribute disc in the last seven or so years?

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