The All American Rejects "Kids in the Street"

It’s funny how marketing can cause such anticipation for an album and not live up to the hype, but that isn’t the goal; the goal is to sell. What seemed like an interesting concept ended up being a sad tale of the Kids In The Street. The first song’s screaming intro and gargae-rock angst more than makes up for it, and makes me think of Weezer dressed up as Ghostbusters. Unfortunately, they are not very skilled in handling psychotic killers, or man-eaters. Subject change! “Beekeeper’s Daughter” not only has that killer horn in the hook, but addresses the scenario that the famous endure: obsessed fans who wouldn’t mind a little action; whether that person is single or not. It can be great for some, but for the weak-willed they may falter in the land of too much temptation. “Fast and Slow” is like a neon Trees Song with male vocals coming out of the doo-wop era, and the female vocals give it the spunk. If you “Walk Over Me” to the point of no return, in betrayal, then I will just as easily walk “Out The Door” of your life. The former uses snark to hide the pain of being misunderstood, and a doorstep, or maybe it is true apathy as to how the world perceives the protag; the latter recalls their earlier material. The title track is not just a stroll down memory lane, in sound (but not their own), but a document of their maturity, or love of the 80’s. What sounds like a galloping beat, with bells, and a mixture of garage and psychedelic rock may “Bleed Into Your Mind,” unless it is just an illusion. I have “Affection” for this song, not only because of the growth, but the fact they had recaptured that pain  that inspired their debut; “I For You” also sounded like an earlier cut. “Drown Next To Me” has strings for Newsboys fans, what sounds like a tragic love tale for fans of Shakespeare, and instrumentals that actually give the illusion of a running current, and a rewarding second half. The album was not what I expected, but there is no contest between their last album and this one. I was disappointed with their last album as a whole, but there were some good tunes on it; this was more consistent.