Rise Against "Appeal To Reason"

The best punk band to come along since Pennywise, Chicago's Rise Against, is back with their 5th full length album, “Appeal To Reason.” “Collapse (Post Amerika)” leads off the album warning of the coming climate crisis that we won’t properly address until it is far too late. The album is mainly a call to arms for all people to join together to stand against what is wrong with every facet of the world. “Long Forgotten Sons” eases you into the records vibe while “Re-Education (Through Labor)” screams of the hard work ahead and dashed hopes cannot hinder our revolution. Lead singer Tim McIlrath preaches, “We sow seeds to see us through. Cause sometimes dreams just don’t come true. Look now, at what they’ve done to you! Fight, we never live if we just survive.”

“From Heads Unworthy” seeks to steal the power from the Kings and let the people take over which is so desperately needed with our impotent government not listening to our views (i.e. the bailout everyone wanted to fail and yet the congress passed on the 2nd try as if they tried to listen to our pleas but just knew better than the common man with their royal intellects). “I’m not after fame and fortune, I’m after you!” I agree and we must seek real revolution in regards to our failed government.

The two standout songs on the album are “The Strength To Go On” and “Hero Of War” The first continues with the theme of the majority knowing what is best for all of us. “What we are is the sum of a thousand lies, what we know is almost nothing at all. But we are what we are till the day we die, or until we don’t have the strength to go on.” I love the line “Our colors run and leave a stain,” a nice little shot at bumper sticker America (these colors don’t run).

The “Hero Of War” is the albums ballad which tells the story of a young man recruited into the military to see the world, only to have his journey end by accidentally killing an innocent civilian in war and learning that being a soldier doesn’t mean you are a hero. It also describes how one falls in love with flag and country for the right reasons, though circumstances may lead you the other way into the torture and humiliation of prisoners we have come to know with Guantanamo Bay. “Ill carry this flag, to the grave if I must. Cause it’s the flag that I love, the flag that I trust.” Even good men fail with the mob’s mentality. Unflinchingly beautiful, sad, and eloquent, track 12 pulls at so many emotions dealing with the complicated issues of war, “A hero of war, is that what they see? Just medals and scars, so damn proud of me.”

The album may not be as good as their last, “The Sufferer And The Witness” but it’s not exactly easy to achieve a near masterpiece with back to back albums. Still, save for a couple of tracks, Rise Against continue to put out the best punk today with raging guitars, powerful lyrics, and a library of increasingly needed political questions with answers.