Against Me!

Thrash Unreal [7 inch] (2007)

Bryne Yancey

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This limited edition 7" was a promotional giveaway to online orderers of Against Me!'s recent polarizing full-length, New Wave. "Thrash Unreal," taken from said full-length, makes up Side A and isn't any different here than on the album. Not that it'd have to be, as it's arguably the strongest track on New Wave. The song is as anthemic, if not moreso, than other perennial band classics like "Pints of Guinness Make You Strong" and "Cliché Guevara." Yeah, I went there. Whether it's the infectious "bah bah bah"s in the chorus or the sharp lyrics, it's damn near impossible to not tap your foot and sing along. Which is weird, because it's not exactly a fast song. It seems to plod along at a slower pace, but it's over before you know it, much like the rest of New Wave.

The B-side is "You Must Be Willing," a non-album track. The song's a definite grower, as its four-and-a-half-minute length and methodical pace make it a chore to listen to the first couple of times. It does have the acoustic guitar that was strangely missing from New Wave, which is good, but lyrically it's super wordy while being so cliché-ridden it ends up saying very little. It's not a bad track per se, but it's easy to hear why it didn't make it onto New Wave.

The front cover artwork is really cool, as I'm sure you can see. However, at least on my copy, the lyrics were horribly misprinted on the back cover. Seriously. Tons of spelling mistakes and even complete lines omitted in some parts. The person who was supposed to proofread that ought to be fired.

So there you go. A cool collector's item if one is so inclined.