Send "Against Me " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Popmatters |
 When we last heard from Against Me!, they were earning mainstream recognition for their major label debut, New Wave. They had a minor hit single in “Thrash Unreal” and even a romantic-sounding duet with Tegan of indie darlings Tegan and Sara. The production from Butch Vig toned down some of the band’s punk grit and emphasized a more expansive, rock-oriented sound. But all was not lost for the hardcore audience who discovered the band when Against Me! were angry punks on small labels. There was still plenty of left-wing fury from bandleader Tom Gabel on the album. “Thrash Unreal” was even about an ex-junkie trying to hang on to her youth. When Gabel released his subsequent solo EP Heart Burns, it consisted largely of raw, yet catchy, mostly-acoustic protest songs. There was reason to hope that the full band’s follow-up to New Wave might hearken back to the early days.The opening two tracks of White Crosses feed right into that hope. Sure, with Butch Vig again producing, the sound is still clean and maybe even bigger this time out. The title track is a chugging, major key-screed about the pro-life movement and features the refrain, “White crosses on the church lawn / I want to smash them all!” But Gabel knows his audience is larger and more inclusive now, so he makes the rest of the lyrics vague enough that it’s not patently obvious what he’s singing about. Following that, “I Was a Teenage Anarchist” is a pitch-perfect song about growing up and outgrowing simplistic punk politics. At this point, you can imagine those old-school fans celebrating that the Against Me! they knew and loved is back. A little older and wiser, but they’re back doing what they do best....full text |
| Culturebully |
| Not only was New Wave Against Me!’s major label debut (Sire), but it stands as both the most commercially and critically successful album in the band’s career. The 10 song set was produced by Butch Vig (Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Green Day), debuted at the #57 spot on the Billboard 200, and would eventually be named the best album of 2007 by Spin Magazine. Refusing to break the mold with the band’s full-length follow-up, White Crosses, Against Me! once again enlisted Vig to man the boards for the release. Actually, the only considerable change in the recording—again to be released via Sire, again running 10 songs deep—is the absence of drummer Warren Oakes, who was replaced by George Rebelo (Hot Water Music) following his departure from the band last June. With that exception White Crosses does little to disrupt both the sound and the direction that the band took with New Wave; that being polished folk-punk, just as primed and ready for mainstream rock radio as it is the next generation of angry, distraught youth. The album’s title track kicks things off with a plodding rhythm that courses over Tom Gabel’s passionate lyrics. Touching on a common theme which runs throughout White Crosses, Gabel repeats “White crosses on the church lawn, I want to smash them all” during the song’s chorus, a refrain which embodies a lot of the anger and confusion that is revealed over the following nine tracks. “I Was a Teenage Anarchist” continues with the feeling of “Crosses” as it lyrically sets forth the symptoms of becoming increasingly jaded and detached as the illusion of one’s beliefs becomes shattered through age. “Because of the Shame” recalls a story of a broken relationship, set over a rolling piano line that deeply accentuates the rumbling guitar which drifts above it. The lost love theme is renewed later in “We’re Breaking Up;” both songs resigned to the idea that once there is love, neither death nor a torn relationship can completely erase it....full text |
| Sputnikmusic |
| I have listened to this album and I have foreseen my death: I'll be down in Florida to hang out with Chan and John Hanson. Chan will be working late so I'll go out with John Hanson despite the fact that we fucking hate each other. When we get back to the apartment, I'll be blacked out sitting on a couch and John Hanson will suggest we listen to some music. I'll be too intoxicated to offer a coherent response so I'll be unable to protest when he throws on "White Crosses". Hanson goes in the other room to change and starts espousing some meticulously crafted bullshit rant about the pleasures of conformity as "I Was a Teenage Anarchist" blares. I'll turn around to see Hanson in a lab coat wielding a giant axe over his head and all I'll be able to stammer is "Are you wearing a lab coat". In an effort to make my last moments as excruciatingly ironic as possible, Hanson will wittily retort "Why, yes, didn't you know I are scientists". I'll be utterly filled with dread and loathing and absolute fucking resentment as the axe falls....full text |
Against Me lyrics
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