MxPx
At the Show
Reviewed by Doug Van Pelt
For a band that puts on a killer live show, this album is a great idea. I, for one, was not hooked on this band until I had seen them live several times. Infectious songs like "Punk Rawk Show" and "Teenage Politics" were nice highlights, but it was their incredible tightness that pulled me in like a caught fish into this band's musical grip. Adapting 50's bopper pop music into a punk rock format is a swell idea, but the chops and synchronized playing of Mike, Yuri, and Tom make it work. These guys have sounded at times like a well-oiled jazz trio, playing off one another and stopping on a dime. While not as big as some of the classic rock live albums (can you say several studio hours worth of overdubs?), this recording stands up pretty well. There's a little bit of mud in the mix, but the balance between raw punk and studio clean was handled pretty well. The vocals sound a little distant at times, as do the drums, but it's well above the world of bootlegs in terms of quality (in case you were wondering how raw it was). This recording shows much of the playful interaction between frontman Mike Herrera and the audience (Washington DC and Philadelphia), including the fun breakdown in "Chick Magnet" and joking around. It also shows quite well why these guys are in the lead pack when it comes to pop punk. They're not just creative, fun, talented musicians and songwriters; they're all those together! This 22-song extravaganza is equal parts punk aggression ("Fist vs. Tact" and "Forgive and Forget") and pop hooks ("Middlename" and "I'm Ok, You're Ok"). Viva la MxPx!