4 Past Midnight

Trials and Tribulations (2005)

Jesse Raub

Yipes. Someone tell these guys not to have anime drawings for their next record. That's just atrocious. And someone tell them to change their name.

What we got here is some British hardcore-inspired street punk from a band that has their drummer do the lead vocals. Basic, three-to-four chord progressions, aggressions, gang vocals, fast tempos, etc. And it's not terrible. You know, if that's your thing.

Lyrically, the songs are just a bunch of vague anti-establishment rants that don't go anywhere -- "You try and beat the system, but it only brings you down, when your [sic] searing for a way out, in this world of fucking hate," and "You must never give in, we must never give in, cause were [sic] pissed on shat on, treated like shit while politicians lie back sucking Blair's dick, its not right its not right its not right."

I dunno, I just don't think this kind of stuff is really progressive in this day and age. This kind of stuff would be mind-boggling back in the day, but the music world is flooded with these bands that just yell about how stuff is crappy and how the system brings them down, blah blah blah. I mean, it just reminds me of those people who get into punk music because they think it gives them a good excuse just to be an asshole. And I'm not saying that this is what 4 Past Midnight is, I'm just saying I'm sort of tired of it. If people really want a change, then they should do something about it. Maybe I'm just in a bad mood.