Rise Against

Item: Revolutions Per Minute
Author: Luke Harlow

Revolutions Per Minute

(2003)

Reviewed by Luke Harlow

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Label Fat Wreck ChordsDecapolisAugust 2003

melodic hardcore punk skate punk

Rise Against is a four-piece punk band and hails from the Chicago area. They have been around for a while and include members that played in 88 Fingers Louie. This is their second album on Fat Wreck Chords.

Flat out, "Revolutions Per Minute" is one of the better punk rock records to come out this year. It is a record chock-full of melodic hardcore punk anthems. Virtually every track gives an opportunity for a fist-in-the-air sing-along.

And if the songs on "RPM" make listeners want to raise their fists, Rise Against also raises a pretty big middle finger to the American establishment. See, for example, lyrics to the opening track "Black Masks and Gasoline:" "I don't understand where you got this idea so deeply engrained in your head, that this world is something that you must impress. Because I couldn't care less. . . . I have an Amerikan dream, but it involves black masks and gasoline. One day I'll turn these thoughts into screams at a world that turned its back on me." Or, check out "Blood-Red, White, & Blue:" "Give me your logic, your definition. The words you twist to justify your position of mass starvation and blind airstrikes. Every problem is solved with a fight. . . . Would God bless a murder of the innocents? Would God bless a war based on pride? Would God bless a money-hungry government? No. Would God Bless an ineffective court system? God bless the sweatshops we run. Would God bless Amerika? God bless Amerika."

As controversial as such lyrics might be, they are set up and delivered in such a way that Rise Against avoid appearing overly reactionary and clichéd, the pitfalls that tend to hamper most political punk bands. Frankly, Rise Against are a band someone would want to listen to, even if they disagreed thoroughly with the band's viewpoints. "RPM" is exciting, fresh, and confident. Besides the two songs mentioned above, tracks like "Broken English," the straightforward "Dead Ringer," the infectious "Like the Angel," or any of the others make for an incredible effort. It is sure to appeal to fans of skate punk (a la Pennywise, NOFX), melodic hardcore (a la Stretch Arm Strong), and pretty much anything in between. "RPM" begs its listener to leave the record right where it is in the player. And most listeners will.