Banner Pilot

Banner Pilot: Resignation Day [reissue]Resignation Day [reissue] (2010)
Fat Wreck Chords

Reviewer Rating: 4

User Rating:

Contributed by: JeloneJelone
(others by this writer | submit your own)
Published on September 21st 2010Generally speaking, remixing and remastering albums is a bad idea. Either the source material doesn't change discernibly (Four Minute Mile) or it changes way too much (Let It Be... Naked). Either way, they can feel like a middle finger to fans. The recent re-release of Banner Pilot's full-length deb.

Generally speaking, remixing and remastering albums is a bad idea. Either the source material doesn't change discernibly (Four Minute Mile) or it changes way too much (Let It Be... Naked). Either way, they can feel like a middle finger to fans. The recent re-release of Banner Pilot's full-length debut, Resignation Day, defies this notion.

To be honest, I didn't come around on Banner Pilot until last year's Collapser. Before that album, I wrote them off as another Dillinger Four clone. It didn't help that Resignation Day kind of, sort of, well, sounded like ass. By the band's own admission, the record wasn't properly mastered, so even calling this re-release a remaster is a misnomer. This is more like how the album should have sounded all along. The guitars are crunchier, the vocals are more distinct in the mix and the songs just sound better and fuller overall. This is Midwestern drunk punk done right.

The new sheen also highlights what was already good about the songs. Guitar leads are revealed to be much more intricate than originally thought. Nick Johnson's lyrics are clearer too. Banner Pilot has gotten a lot of Jawbreaker comparisons, which I don't agree with musically, but Johnson is definitely one of the better, more descriptive lyricists in punk rock today. On that level, he's shaping up to be a Blake Schwarzenbach, although it remains to be seen if he has a 24 Hour Revenge Therapy or Dear You in him. I actually get a mild Green Day influence. Nate Gangelhoff's basslines have a bounciness reminiscent of Mike Dirnt's playing circa the '90s, and the opening riff of "No Transfer" kind of sounds like a reworking of "American Idiot."

Even if you're not sold on rebuying Resignation Day for the fidelity, the album does come with two bonus tracks, "Spit Out" and "Deadender," originally from a split with Monikers. But for those looking to expand on their library of Midwestern punk, now's the time to buy Resignation Day. If you enjoy punk rock songs about being disappointed, cold and probably drunk, Resignation Day is for you. It's right there in the title! Then get Collapser. Well, assuming you already own Versus God and The Greatest Story Ever Told. Oh, and Alkaline Trio's records for Asian Man. And ya know what, I'm gonna throw the Soviettes in there, because I always liked them and they don't get enough love.

Login to rate this album

People who liked this also liked:

Please login or register to post comments.What are the benefits of having a Punknews.org account?

Share your opinion by posting comments on the stories that interest you
Rate music and bands and help shape the weekly top ten
Let Punknews.org use your ratings to help you find bands and albums you might like
Customize features on the site to get the news the way you want.

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

exilesamongyouyouyou (February 17, 2013)

Nobody is going to agree with me, but I'm just going to go ahead and say it: the original recording is AMAZING and a lot of the charm is lost in this reissue. I really didn't have a problem listening to the Go-Kart release, in fact I loved it. Some of the vocal mixing on the reissue is wonky and there's one hook in particular that is totally butchered in this release. Additionally, I find the slight difference in track ordering to be a massive halt in the flow of the album - it flowed great originally, why change it? The bleak, sort of distorted original mixing worked so well for the bleak winter theme of the album. Now it sounds too warm and cheery. It makes me think of that line from NOFX's "Jaw, Knee, Music" about the beauty of flaw.

Packaging wise, I love digipaks, so that was a positive change I thought. Unfortunately, the lyric booklet was messed with and the words were crammed into the same style of the Collapser booklet, which really irritates me. Not only is the artwork lost, but the convenience of finding a particular lyric is completely gone. (And for the record, Resignation Day trumps Collapser by a long shot).

I do, however, enjoy having the additional tracks. So there's that.

Rudy_Tinten (October 10, 2010)

http://www.startupbusinessfinancing.org

Rudy_Tinten (October 10, 2010)

http://www.startupbusinessfinancing.org

StraightToHell82 (September 23, 2010)

I can't get into these guys. I really dig like 3 songs, but other than that they just seem so repetitive and kind of bland.

warriorone (September 22, 2010)

Must say I have not heard the previous releases but listened to the album recently , Resignation Day and really enjoyed the sound . Not usually the type of music I normally listen too but the album has really piqued my interest. Maybe I have been missing out on this genre . Will definetly be paying more attention now . Already did some research , huh . Just expanding my horrizons

thepopeofchili-town (September 21, 2010)

HUGE improvement over the original. Really, really glad they did this. It's almost on par with Collapser now.

icapped2pac (September 21, 2010)

I really wish I hadn't bought the original on CD AND vinyl, because this is SO much better. I bought it thinking it would sound a little better, but the difference is huge. I still like Collapser better, but I like this one more now than before.

daggers (September 21, 2010)

Nobody has mentioned the EP yet? I like it more than anything else by them. I will probably check this out, the original sounded so rubbish

Irish_Punk_Is_Gimmickry (September 21, 2010)

liked the new one, might have to check this one out too...........................

Tudor (September 21, 2010)

Good album, but I still prefer 'collapser' ten fold.

twstdbydsn (September 21, 2010)

This new version is pretty fantastic. I couldn't listen to the original because it sounded so flat & bland. The remix & remaster helps tremendously!

PrivateRadio (September 21, 2010)

I actually hated this record first time around. I could certainly acknowledge the songs were good and I've listened to plenty of shitty sounding records and loved them, but something about this one...it actually hurt my ears to turn the volume up. I've gotten a quick listen to the reissue and now that I'll get to actually listen to this record without wincing, I look forward to seeing if I love it as much as everyone else does.

Tyler92 (September 21, 2010)

Great band, did an awesome job of making it sound better although I didn't think it was all that bad to begin with.

nocigar (September 21, 2010)

uhm, this record always kicked ass.

but this is great

mikexdude (September 21, 2010)

I think it's funny that you say a Banner Pilot song was a reworking of "American Idiot", when "American Idiot" was a reworking of a Dillinger Four song!

But really, I've listened to so many bands with shitty recording quality, I feel Resignation Day really didn't sound bad enough to have this done to it.

Thrusters (September 21, 2010)

It's amazing how much better this record is now that it doesn't sound like it was recorded through an asshole. Nate's basslines kick ass.