Popular rock band Rise Against released their twelfth album on June 4. The album is consistent with the style they have kept since their first album in 2005.
The album opens with “The Numbers”, a song about the starting of a rebellion against the rich. The song is your typical Rise Against rock song that is catchy and will get stuck in your head. The song was one of the first released before the album was released in June. Many Rise Against fans love the nostalgic feel the song gives off. The end of the song states “We will continue to be what we know.” This is a powerful quote overall because we, as people, will only be what we have known and are accustomed to.
The third song is one of the honorable mentions. This song has been on repeat since its release. “Nowhere Generation” is about how the current generation of young people is nothing like our older, preceding generation. While this is true in more ways than one, Rise Against captures the variety this generation has to offer very well in the song itself. There is an acoustic version of this song that was released after the album was dropped and it is not a style typically reached for by the band.
The next song that was a fan favorite was “Talking to Ourselves”. It is a song about how it seems no one listens to anyone in this day and age and pushes to be heard. It defines the radio silence that we feel when we are unheard. It has an upbeat tempo and that solid rock feel Rise Against is always pushing for. The bridge of this song is not quite their normal style; it changes by losing the lead guitar with the same quick tempo from the beginning.
The song “Broken Dreams, Inc.” is a song that you would expect from the band. It was also one of the singles first released. It has all the typical and expected themes from Rise Against, using the old-school rock sound and fast tempo. The song is about how many Americans lose out on their dreams and how many do not have access to the resources as other Americans.
One song that sounds nothing like Rise Against is “Forfeit”, the sixth song on the album. Forfeit is an acoustic song featuring a full orchestra. Rise Against is not a band that often records acoustic songs, so this song comes as a surprise to the audience. The song has a positive sound aside from being a depressing song about giving up. The song turns around at the end with lyrics of “I will not give up” which sends a motivating message for the audience.
Overall this album rocks. The songs listed above are only a handful of the songs released on the album. Rise Against has always been a band that delivers the same or similar style to their fans. It is an album worth listening to if rock soothes the soul.