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Fucked Up - Couple Tracks: Singles 2002-2009 (Cover Artwork)

Fucked Up

Fucked Up: Couple Tracks: Singles 2002-2009Couple Tracks: Singles 2002-2009 (2010)
Matador Records

Reviewer Rating: 3

User Rating:

Contributed by: Mrdogg45Mrdogg45
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Published on February 5th 2010You are Fucked Up, a hazy hardcore outfit from the frozen north of Canada. You've been making songs at a breakneck pace for about five years now. Your Internet stock is as high as it has ever been. Your most recent album, The Chemistry of Common Life, is your most profitable and well-received releas.

You are Fucked Up, a hazy hardcore outfit from the frozen north of Canada. You've been making songs at a breakneck pace for about five years now. Your Internet stock is as high as it has ever been. Your most recent album, The Chemistry of Common Life, is your most profitable and well-received release to date. Such is your ubiquity that your lead singer is able to land a gig as commentator for Fox News.

So what do you do now? Wait, you don't know? Record a new album? Shit, no! What the fuck is wrong with you?

You release a singles compilation, idiot. That's what Fucked Up did with Couple Tracks: Singles 2002-2009. (See, this is why you'll never be Fucked Up.)

First things first: If you are at all interested in buying this record in some way, getting the physical copy is a must. The liner notes to this double-album monster are a dream come true for obsessive music fans. It lists where every song first appeared in the Fucked Up catalog, as well as a little fun fact about where the song was recorded / why it was recorded / how the band feels about it, and makes for a total bitching compendium to the non-stop punk.

Serving as a "get to know your Fucked Up" kind of thing, Couple Tracks is an intimidating behemoth of fast, screamy punk music. The comp starts out with the band's first song ever, "No Pasaran," a kind-of-shitty tune with an overlong intro (the liner notes note that the band has "weird feelings about this track now." See? See how cool the liner notes are?). From that point, it's just an hour and change of career-spanning singles with a focus of acclimating newcomers to what's been going on for the last seven years.

There isn't really a rhyme or reason to the arrangement of tracks, so there is not much flow to the comp. This makes it somewhat daunting to listen to all in one sitting, as songs can tend to meld together into one long buzzsaw factory. As all these tracks are singles, they are all on the more melodic end of the Fucked Up spectrum, which contributes to the sameness.

Some standout tracks: The aptly named "Neat Parts" is an early album highlight. "David Christmas" is a well-produced punk song with a touch of musical theater thrown in towards the beginning. Twee covers "Anorak City" and "I Don't Wanna Be Friends with You" come from an obvious place of love, and make them all the more endearing (finally, some Fucked Up tracks me and my girlfriend can agree on).

Some not-so-standout tracks: The aforementioned "No Pasaran," the single versions of "No Epiphany" and "Crooked Head" (sounded way better on Chemistry), the overlong "Triumph of Life" and the too-gnarly "Last Man Standing."

While it is by no means required listening, Couple Tracks is certainly worth it for newcomers and short-time fans of an up-and-coming experimental punk band. And while it never achieves an album feel, it's got enough short blasts of quality to make it worth the money. Just make sure you get the physical copy.

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Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not respon sible for them in any way. Seriously.

Eelsupinsideya (February 12, 2010)

I loved Chemistry and have seen them live a few times. They played with Cancer Bats in Newquay last summer and it was a brilliant show. Got this comp in the post yeserday - going to wait until i have an hour or so spare to get the headphones on and listen intently. Chosen not to put it on the ipod as I agree that when bands go to the effort of writing about the songs, then this should be read as and when you listen, well, for the first time anyway...

jcole (February 12, 2010)

The Split with Hardskin was also sold at a few shows after, one of which i was able to get a copy. If you can see them live, do it! plus, its the easiest way to pick up any records from them rather than pre-order or ebay. if you have some of the songs, i'd say get it, if you have all the songs, still get it.

Douglas_is_rad (February 8, 2010)

A lot of the singles on this LP are rare as shit, which is why this comp is pretty valuable. Toronto FC was limited to 300 and sold at one show, and the song totally rules!

NYblowhards (February 8, 2010)

I've had this a few weeks. It's more hardcore sound throughout than their albums. I like the albums more.

3

*'s. A few really great tracks on here but not enough to make it an immediate purchase or dl. Hearing their earliest stuff you'd have no clue of where'd they go. Just depends of if you're a hardcore kid who just likes spazzy shit or have a more open mind. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Solid review by whoever wrote it! -gonna go read comments by whoever else said something. ChEErS

wentz_equals_death (February 7, 2010)

i too had about half of these, but i think it was worth it. i mean, if you are strapped for cash on a regular basis i'd say skip it, but if you have $15 to spare you could do much worse. nice to get the mp3 downloads w/vinyl too so you can take em on the road

thekidsaresoso (February 7, 2010)

I have almost half of these songs in their original vinyl glory. That said, is this still worth picking up?

SloaneDaley (February 7, 2010)

I disagree with the score slightly, it has some of the bands best material (Dangerous Fumes and it's American and European b-sides) but also some of their less fantastic stuff. Overall a 7.

victim (February 6, 2010)

Such is your ubiquity that your lead singer is able to land a gig as commentator for Fox News.

How did that turn out?

R3vengeTherapy (February 6, 2010)

Not sure how you could give this a 6 just because it's not sequenced all that great and there are some alternate versions you don't like, but whatever. This monster of a singles collection is one of the better ones released by any band. If you like Fucked Up, this is clearly a no-brainer. Even though I agree with the reviewer on the alternate versions and that it can blend together after a little while, you gotta remember that this thing was meant to be broken up, since it's not an album.

I love it.

88fingerstonytherevenge (February 6, 2010)

Im one of those assholes that thinks everything these dudes have touched is pure gold, and some of these songs I dont have which makes this essential to me.

raveneffect (February 6, 2010)

Good review. I def agree on the No Epiphany and Crooked Head part,I just can't get into the fast recordings. Solid release from Fucked Up for people who don't own the billions of 7 inches they've put out over the last few years.

wentz_equals_death (February 6, 2010)

you think 'last man standing' is too gnarly, you should hear the version on year of the dog

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