LAWRENCE ARMS: The greatest story ever told CD Top punk rock. check audio (whole album, all songs)

 5.98

The following rules are working:

In stock

SKU: YP-4597 Categories: , , , Tag:

Description

Chris is a full fledged member of the band and hes getting just as many songs as Brendan and it works with great. The album has a grand theme and it seems like a book rather than an album. the songs are awesome and Brendan is even more aggressive in this album. He has like one minute blast songs while Chris has like 4 minute songs that are very mellow. This was probably the best album of 2003 in my opinion.

This is the record you always hope your buying, but never get” No joke.
“The Greatest Story Ever Told” is far and away the best record the Lawrence Arms, or any other Brendan Kelly fronted band for that matter, has ever released. From beginning to end, this record is a modern classic. In a time when punk rock is becoming increasingly homogeneous and repetitive, the Lawrence Arms have given us something truly original and different. A breath of fresh air.
The Lawrence Arms utilize the two-front men sound that has become increasingly popular in punk rock over the last several years, but not since Joe Strummer and Mick Jones has a punk duo shined so brightly. Bassist Brendan Kelly and guitarist Chris McCaughan have two drastically different voices and deliveries, but both are masters of weaving drunken tales of despair into almost beautiful poetry. Lyrically, there is no better punk rock today. Kelly and McCaughan compliment each other beautifully on this record, which is remarkable when you compare Kellys scathing, abrasive delivery to McCaughns near-soothing, wispy flows. Both singers are at the top of their game on this record, and compliment each other further by lending stunning backing vocals to each others songs.
Musically, this record mops the floor with previous Lawrence Arms recordings. Most punk bands with one guitarist will typically record a second guitar track to fill out their sound, but McCaughan records as many as three, four, five or maybe more on some of these songs, adding glassy open chords and glorious leads over the typical power chord delivery. Kellys bass playing is as solid as ever, with numerous melodic lines cutting through the wall of guitars throughout the record. Drummer Neil Hennessy provides a solid backbone for the song with his usual thundering percussiveness, and shines through on his own during the intro for the aptly titled “March of the Elephants”.
Obscure references to pop-culture, literature, history and otherwise abound throughout the record, with song titles and lyrics alluding to various authors, poets and writings. While some may consider this plagiarism, I’d call it a genius approach to song writing that few have ever dared to explore. The mix of obscure citations and the Lawrence Arms typical drunken poetry makes for a lyrically tantalizing record that no one has come close to equalling in recent history.
There isn’t a bad song on this record. Every song is fantastic, and most of them stand up with the Lawrence Arms finest ever. “Chapter 13: The Hero Appears” is quickly becoming one of my favorite songs of all time, and is easily Chris McCaughans finest work yet. “Alert the Audience!” and “March of the Elephants” are better than any of Brendan Kellys songs from “Apathy & Exhaustion”. “Drunk Mouth Kitchen Smile” and “The Revisionist” are beautiful at the least, and “The Disaster March” stands among the veteran Kellys best songs ever. Every song is fantastic. This record is obviously a must for Broadways and Slapstick fans, but its likely that fans of Jawbreaker, Alkaline Trio and The Weakerthans among others would enjoy this record just as much as the veteran Larry Arms fans do. Simply put, “The Greatest Story Ever Told” is one of the best albums in recent punk rock history, and is an essential addition to the collection of any fan of modern day punk rock, pop-punk, emo or any related genre. This is a phenomenal effort that deserves more recognition. Order it now.

This circus-themed record captures all the lunacy and greatness that is the Larry Arms. The kids (that’s you guys) tell us it’s their best shit yet, so there ya go.

Track Listings
1. Introduction
2. The Raw And Searing Flesh
3. On With The Show
4. Drunk Mouth Kitchen Smile
5. Alert The Audience!
6. Fireflies
7. The March Of The Elephants
8. Chapter 13: The Hero Appears
9. Hesitation Station
10. The Revisionist
11. The Ramblin’ Boys Of Pleasure
12. A Wishful Puppeteer
13. The Disaster March
14. Outro

https://thelawrencearms.bandcamp.com/album/the-greatest-story-ever-told

This is a record that seems to be something of a fan favorite. People love the subtle literary references.
“Yeah and you know, this was a really fun record to make in a lot of ways, but in a lot of other ways, this was our first experience with growing pains. Our band wasn’t quite as cohesive as it had been in the past. This record came out the day I got married. It was the first record we’d made where Chris and I weren’t roommates. It wasn’t a dark time by any stretch of the imagination but as a band, it was the first time where it wasn’t the three of us rolling around together all the time. We tried to use that fragmentation to our advantage. It’s a back and forth between pensive songs and these quick bursts of energy. I really enjoy this record and I think I enjoy it more in retrospect. I like listening to it more than I liked making it. It was the first time we sat down and were like, “Wow, this is what our band really, really sounds like. This is who we are.”

What parts of it felt like you’d finally started doing things right?
“We put together the very beginning of the record and the intro, it just sounded so wrong. We thought it was so fucked up and disturbing… and we had to do it. If it elicits that much of a gross out response from us, then it’s the right thing to do. This was the first record where we did things that were a little bit terrifying. I remember when we put those crazy fucking deep-ass vocals at the bottom of “Rambling Boys of Pleasure” and then those high, almost girlish vocals on there. And I just couldn’t believe it was music of a band that I was in. I just feel like we took a lot of risks on that record. I’m not trying to overstate our dynamism. We’re ultimately a pop punk band. So these are small risks, but for us, it was a big deal.

The funny thing is, Fat Mike hated that record. Fat Wreck Chords hated it. Everybody hated it when it came out. And it was only sort of… to use the words of George Bush, history has redeemed it. It’s a thinking fan’s record. I wouldn’t change anything about it”.


ALSO, CHECK:

LAWRENCE ARMS: Oh Calcutta CD punk rock. check video + audio (whole album, all songs)

Additional information

Weight 0.1 kg

Reviews

There are no reviews yet.

Be the first to review “LAWRENCE ARMS: The greatest story ever told CD Top punk rock. check audio (whole album, all songs)”

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *