REVIEW: Resurrection//New Found Glory: Burning Down Bridges While Still Remaining On Their Feet

3/5 Stars

Wave to Watch: "Ready and Willing"

Genre: Pop Punk

Goes great with: Brand New, Man Overboard, All Time Low, Real Friends 

For New Found Glory, this past year has been a tumultuous one, a whirlwind surrounding the release of guitarist Steve Klein after "personal differences", namely convictions of inappropriate conduct involving a minor. Yet, New Found Glory still bounce back, even if they are now governing a ship without their long-time member.

The 2000s pop-punk patriarchs' eighth LP is a youthful one, mixed with adult, although sometimes awkward, moments, which can be attributed to the fact that this was NFG's first main stab at writing without their sole lyricist. Some lines seem forced and blundering, as if the listener could fill the line in better themselves. But Gilbert's classic and usual hardcore approach drives each song, even during the moments where you wish the song would just end, partly due to the blatantly childish lines that litter much of the album. When Resurrection gets one right, it soars, when it misses, oh, does it miss. 

The album opens with a tortured ring that leads into the classic NFG chugging "Selfless", which sets the scene for the trend of clichés on the album, yet the line, "I’m just dust in the breeze, but I want to be a hurricane” force feeds at least one spectacular line into the song. The title track may be about the turmoil in the band in recent years and "The Worst Person" is a blatant stab at Klein, spitting, "the whole time you were abusing the ones you loved." 

The track to watch, however, is "Ready and Willing", which arguably could have served as the opening track, scorching through with the line, "I defied the odds." And looking at NFG's timeline, yes they have, notoriously climbing to the top quickly after signing with a "proper" label, as well as remaining respected patriarchs in the scene throughout the years.

The album drowns in a case of the "mid-album blues", only to be somewhat salvaged by the fluid "Vicious Love", which will make you want to bob your head for the entirety of its 3 minutes and 23 seconds. The bridge of "Stories of a Different Kind" emerges from the darkness, offering the sentiments, "I've been around the world a thousand times/Had people shouting out my name/To later on forget all the words they sang/ And it never felt the same." 

"Angel" burns through, driven by the Grushka (bass) and Bolooki (drums), defaming an ex with flying words. Gilbert's riffs in "Stubborn" are catchy and brilliant, and Pundik's vocals soar, making the track one of the album's high points. The penultimate track, "Living Hell", is the lyrical strong point of Resurrection, promising, "Can I give you a ride back home/You can tell me where I went wrong". It remains sentimental without becoming too maudlin and trite.

Finally, "On My Own", offers some hope for the future, affirming that they'll "start again" and "do it again". Even after the rough seas of 2013, NFG has blazed a path for themselves, although rocky at times, in 2014 with Resurrection and the world can't wait to see what they do next. Because, believe it or not, New Found Glory is going to be okay.

//Angelia//