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| Gym Class HeroesAs Cruel as School Children2006 Fueled by Ramen / Decaydence 
  Review by: EyesLikeBombs See others by this writer Only registered users can post comments 
 
Published on September 5th 2006
Gym Class Heroes' greatest strength, their fence straddling of genres, often doubles as their greatest weakness. Rap heads can't stand them and punk kids tend to not give them a chance. As a fan of live instrumentation in rap music and the "hip-hop band" mentality, I was very careful not to pigeonhole them, as easy at it would be considering their record label and cohorts. Unfortunately, their latest album, As Cruel as School Children, reveals just how deserving of their in-betweener reputation they are, both in terms of their genre and their abilities as songwriters.
We'll do whatever you want to.Travis McCoy's lush glamorization of drug usage conveys his message of debauchery perfectly. A 15-year-old in tight pants is planning on using this song to get into his girlfriend's pants as we speak. This is an album that sounds like it that desperately wants to be taken seriously by the hip-hop underground as well as the emo crowd, but spends too much time pandering to their current fans. And while there's nothing wrong with playing music for your fans, the output's quality in this case just isn't high enough to garner respect from sophisticated listeners. All the style in the world can't make up for the lack of substance and progression in this album. I expect that as the band matures and drops the lame guest appearances (Patrick Stump and William Beckett of Fall Out Boy and the Academy Is..., respectively, both appear on the album), we could get a stellar album out of these guys. Until then, we're left with another mess of an album that doesn't show much but potential. People who liked this also liked:           Please login or register to post comments. What are the benefits of having a Punknews.org account?
Yep. Heiruspecs are the premier live hip-hop band around. "listen to heiruspecs instead" I thought "Taxi Driver" off their first album was a good song with clever lyrics so I bought the album and I ended up liking one other song I think. Thus, I don't expect too much from this album. This album's fun and good for the summer. i love how rappers hate this band almost as much as kfed And when i say Prince Paul I mean the album, A Prince Among Thieves. I agree. Talib Kweli ain't great. i think i'm the only one who doesn't go apeshit over talib kweli GYM CLASS HEROES DO NOT CARE ABOUT HIP HOP! take it easy with that n-bomb man, somebody's gonna wind up getting shot this band has 2 niggers.dont take them seriously yea thats it! the blueprint is probably my favorite rap/hip hop cd ever, although jurassic 5-quality control and talib kweli-quality are right up there. and kanye. not these guys. That Jay-Z line in question was from 'The Takeover;' great review...they have lots of potential, but need to drop the 'we're in the emo pop scene, we're freiends with falloutboy, most of our fans are in highschool' mentality and ethos (pathos? whats the word im looking for?) they put forward in so many of these songs. travis has a ton of skill and potential and the back beats and music are great as well. like that Jay Z song...something about 'you was ;using it wrong' hes using his skill the wrong way, talking about highschool and myspace. it almost immediately eliminates any fan base they could have over the age of 18 or 19. I'm 26 and love the sloppy love jingles and the queen and I but the immature shit just turns me off to the album as a whole. if i was still in highschool i'd probably be eating this shit up. its like the reel big fish of its day. Oh! I'm ready for it, come on bring it! This band is a joke. Awesome review, told me everything I needed to know. Honestly, I thought this was very well written. This is my first review. I thought this band couldn't get more obnoxious than "Cupid's Chokehold," but "Clothes Off!" proved me sorely, sorely wrong. I know everyone hates those bands normally, but christ, their vocalists are annoying as hell out of context. Gym class heroes = College dork posers. Their first EP was awesome, everything since -- terrible. i cant stop listenin to this album.. 1. Heiruspecs are great. Everyone should listen to them. oh yeah, and I'm with WEZ; don't even try to front on Atmosphere. I think you took this album too seriously. Lame. worst. "I think that these guys as well as P.O.S. really succeed where Atmosphere comes off as a poseur." I have only heard one song on this record and it was really good. However, I really enjoyed The Papercut Chronicles. I think that these guys as well as P.O.S. really succeed where Atmosphere comes off as a poseur. Their lyrics really seem honest, rather than stating how awesome they are. i thought this album was a huge step forward from the first album, and even though i didn't think it was the best thing i had heard all summer i couldn't stop listening to it for like a month. this shit is the fucking plague I have a hatred of 99.9% rap and hip hop. But I like this stuff a lot. And those lyrics aren't bad at all. Actually, they're pretty good and entertaining if you don't take them too seriously. And if you've read the band members opinion on the album, they've pretty much called it a 'summer album' and that's what is. Nothing too serious, but still provides the thrills. these guys are horrible in terms of hiphop |
