New school punk makes me sick. I'm talking about the clean-shaven, beautifully styled, canned radio punk. Basically, the pop bands that call themselves punk. I don't really see what in the heck they have in common with punk rock except distorted guitars. Maybe. However, there are a few punk bands out today who I would not group into that category. Bands that are carrying on something that most people have lost sight of. Something that the old-school punk rockers remembered. Two of those bands are the Bouncing Souls and Anti-Flag. Whenever I reference "new school punk" I always list those two as an exception. I think it's funny that they decided to put out a split on BYO Records. I'm thrilled to death.

The Bouncing Souls do something for me that no other band has ever accomplished with a recording. Every time I listen to a Souls record, I can't help but feel both excited and melancholy. Their music feels like missing a best friend terribly, but at the same time having this great trip down memory lane, remembering that friend. Reminiscing about the best show you ever went to, or an unforgettable road trip, or even that time your crew crashed the mall and walked around making fun of people. Their songs carry so much emotion, but when I listen to it, it's not contrived. I can tell that they're writing from personal experience, and that every note that's played is honest, sincere, and well-earned. As Jim Testa (of Jersey Beat Fanzine fame) put it, "There's a connection there about what it means to be an outsider looking in, about feeling small and picked on and left out, and yet knowing there's something better for you on the other side of tomorrow. And that connection remains whether you're 14 or 40." I couldn't have put it better. Now. On to the record.

Track 1, Punks In Vegas, is done in classic Bouncing Souls style, complete with a catchy, upbeat melody, simple yet engaging guitars, and Greg's one of a kind voice in a half-shout, half-sing. I swear this song gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. Lyrics like Maybe not the best day of my life/but probably in the top five/I left that place with such a high/I didn't want to say goodbye along with the refrain Here's to the memories carry you through the song, leaving you with that mixed emotion I was talking about earlier. After this song, I can't help but take a deep breath and listen to it again. Ha.

No Security is fast, with a politically lyrical touch. A quick guitar solo with plenty of bends is the high point of this song. I can see the crowd finger-pointing and shouting along. No security for YOU!

Track 3, That's Youth, was written by Anti-Flag, and sounds like it. Speedy guitars and chanty choruses make this a good sing-along. They give it the Souls' touch right after the instrumental part, when they slow it down, and then bust back out into the chorus. Good song, well done.

Bryan's Lament is one of the best tracks on this CD. Their friend Brian (who else?) sings on this one, and honest lyrics that everyone can identify with permeate the simple punk rock melody and choruses with plenty of "whooooaaa's" as the background vocals.

They finish out their half of the record with Cock Sparrer's We're Coming Back and Sticks and Stones' Less Than Free. Two good choices for covers, I think, and both nicely done.

Anti-Flag have always fascinated me as a band. I've seen them live four or five times, and every time their show is amazing. (Best punk mosh pit I've ever been in. Hehe.) Also, I think that they do a good job convincing people to take them seriously. By that, I mean, they're all very young, and very political. Most people would shrug them off as "kids," but they've always put a good amount of thought into their lyrical content, and that combined with simple yet catchy punk rhythms and guitar work makes something that's serious. It's not amazingly creative, it's not new, but it's unique in its own right. It's distinctively Anti-Flag. However, some of the lyrics on this record are a little far-fetched, even for me to believe.

The first track they contribute, America Got It Right, kind of pisses me off. It starts out, I was in Chico, California/talking to a foreigner/when a fascist threatened me. Wait. What? You were just talking to some guy, and a fascist came up to you and threatened you? I find that hard to believe. Tolerant California? Sorry. I just can't see this happening. The theme of the song basically is, America got it right by doing the rest of the world wrong. Later in the song, he says Empty words the president slurs/in every speech/while scheming behind closed doors/with the C.I.A. Sorry, I just find it hard to believe that a twenty-year old punker knows anything about what the president does behind closed doors. Do I have suspicions of the government? Sure I do. Do I support everything the president does? Heck no. Do I presume to know or tell other people about what the president does? Heck no. More lyrics: To undermine democracy/to undermine autonomy/to undermine the stability of any leftist populous regime/Making the president a terrorist/making the U.S.A a terrorist/U.S. tax dollars fund, terror, terror, terror... I just don't know what he's talking about. And yes, this song was written post 9/11. Not that that makes a difference. I can hear Anti-Flag writing something like this in 2000. They've always been extreme ont he political spectrum, but dang. I think I might be taking this song the wrong way. I sure hope I am. I'd like to talk with Justin and find out what the heck he's talking about.

Track 2 from Anti-Flag is Smash It To Pieces. This has a very poppy melody and rhythm, but I end up liking it anyway. No Borders, No Nations is another song that doesn't sit right with me. They say If the heads of state want to end terrorism /They should go ahead and kill themselves. The song goes on to decry the government run by the corporations of the world/Enslaving mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters. It ends up saying No borders, no nations, no flags, no patriots. Actually, I will end the Anti-Flag review here, because the lyrics completely stop me from rocking out the least bit to the music.

I just can't stand to hear American kids whine about how bad it is here. If September 11th did nothing else for me, it put my life into perspective. I'll admit that I had lived in a rather self-centered universe before then. What the heck did I care about Afghanistan, much less countries I had never heard of, like Ghana. However, that doesn't change the fact that there are political struggles, coups, military opression, terrorism, poverty, famine, and all kinds of horrible things going on over there that I will never encounter. I don't want to turn this into a political diatribe at all, but I think that Anti-Flag are still at the maturity level where they don't really think about the rest of the world. I had the opportunity to help a group of 3rd-5th graders build a website entitled "Growing Up In Afghanistan" for the ThinkQuest USA contest. I learned so much about other cultures and lifestyles while compiling information for that site. American kids have it dang good. When I hear bands like Anti-Flag spout lyrics like the ones on this album, I just want to tell them, "Go live in Israel for a few years. Then come back and see what kind of songs you start writing." I'm not saying that America is the perfect place. Sure, I think there are plenty of things about our culture that are messed up, and I agree with the basic thought behind AF's lyrics. However, I've come to the realization that in comparison with the rest of the world, I've got it made. I might as well make the most of it. I mean, in other countries kids my age are working in the fields or sweatshops, or guarding headquarters with machine guns, and I'm sitting on my butt in front of an expensive computer in a nice house reviewing a record that I bought because I make so much money that I have some left over after paying bills and buying food. Wow. Now that's something to think about.