I'll be the first to admit it took me years to open myself up to and fully appreciateAlkaline Trio. The combination of the bands dark, gloomy lyrics and painstakingly applied eye liner can be blamed; That or my overall hard headedness.
I pretty much avoided that entire style of music and the mall culture that seemed to inspire it. However, once I did I immediately realized just how good Alkaline Trio and in particular Matt Skiba's gift for creating pop punk excellence mixing hooky melodies with lyrics that, no matter how dark, strange or downright creepy, painted very vivd and often inspiring pictures.
On Skiba's debut solo effort he's backed by A.F.I.'s Hunter Burgan and Jarrod Alexander of My Chemical Romance; excellent choices considering the style and overall feeling of the music.
Though "Babylon" is an excellent record from start to finish with Skiba's signature style of dark, macabre lyrics and powerful pop punk excellence. It doesn't really do anything to distinguish itself from anything he's done with Alkaline Trio. That isn't a knock on the album or Skiba. It's just an honest and obvious observation. Fans of the band will be thoroughly pleased with Skiba's signature song writing and delivery. Standout tracks include the opener "Voices", the delicate "Olivia" , "Falling Like Rain"which evokes memories of Gary Numan's best moments and the inspiring "How The Hell Did We Get Here". Overall "Babylon" is a record I'd highly recommend to just about anyone. Even the most casual of fans.
James Damion
Buy it Here
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