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Good Riddance

My Republic

(Fat Wreck Chords; US: 27 Jun 2006; UK: 3 Jul 2006)

Santa Cruz, California, punk band Good Riddance is a decade in and shows no signs of slowing down. The group gets the punk ball rolling with the rampant, energetic “Out of Mind”, which has everything in sixth gear, but they hit a wall with the power pop punk of “Texas”, which doesn’t show Good Riddance in its best light. The group can hit home runs with “Rise and Fall” and “Shame” that again have the teen-angst quotient in abundance, with a punchy punk structure that brings Sum 41 to mind. And “Darkest Days” has a bit of radio-friendly pop to it, but also has some Rancid vibes. Another keeper is “Tell Me Why”, which is easy to sink your teeth into, while they fly headlong into “Torches and Tragedies”, a pure punk number one could see creating a large mosh pit. At 14 songs, it might appear long, but it’s not, with most clocking in around two minutes and change, like the too ordinary “Regret”—nothing to write, email or Blackberry home about. “Boise” is worth a third or fourth repeated listen as it builds into something bigger and brighter, while “Save the Children” is merely adequate punk rock.

Rating:

Originally from Cape Breton, MacNeil is currently writing for the Toronto Sun as well as other publications, including All Music Guide, Billboard.com, NME.com, Country Standard Time, Skope Magazine, Chart Magazine, Glide, Ft. Myers Magazine and Celtic Heritage. A graduate of the University of King's College, MacNeil currently resides in Toronto. He has interviewed hundreds of acts ranging from Metallica and AC/DC to Daniel Lanois and Smokey Robinson. MacNeil (modestly referred to as King J to friends), a diehard Philadelphia Flyers fan, has seen the Rolling Stones in a club setting, thereby knowing he will rest in peace at some point down the road. Oh, and he writes for PopMatters.com.


Tagged as: good riddance
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24 Apr 2008
This, a recording of the band's final show, is a solid send-off for the boys in Good Riddance.
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