"1. "Lethal Killers" - This is a pretty good song, but very weak as an intro. It would be a lot better if it wasn't the first song on the disk. It has a very haunting, placebo-like feel to it. 7/10
2. "Rabble" - I'm still questioning this songs potential, it starts off pretty good, and gets even better from the middle to the end of the song. He really sings his heart out and it's just another one of the so called love songs youll hear on armed to the teeth. 8/10
3. "The Catalyst" - This is where I Feel the album really kicks in and gets to the good stuff. Another heartbroken love song from Tommy, he sings "I wish i could say something beautifull, to make you fall in love again, but love has slowly faded away like spotlights shining in to space". It's not what's sung, its how he sings it that makes it so good. Very nice and Refreshing song. 9.5/10
4. "Tighter Noose" - Ahhhhh I love this song. There are actually two versions of it. One of them was on the bands website for a long time. Both have parts better than the other, but if i had to pick one of them to be a keeper, it's deffinatly the album version. There are beautifull violins? in this one. Very very good, a standout track for sure. Much different than anything the band has ever done. 10/10
5. "Waiting To Panic" - Another great song again. Very Catchy in fact. There's not too much to say about it. Listen for yourself. 9/10
6. "Hunting (The Unvierse Breaks My Heart)" - Another amazing song. Like nothing the band has done before. The Chorus has a very good feeling sound to it, with thought provoking lyrics. But I'm not giving them away. 10/10
7. "Armed To The Teeth" - The title track. " I am armed to the teeth, you can't hold me down, I turn teething in to a hobby". Not sure what he's talking about yet, but this song works very well. All the instruments work very well together and I'm pretty sure it's the first single. 9/10
8. "Sooner or Later" - This is a decent song, I'm just not feeling the verses or the buildup to the good parts at all. It gets good towards the middle though. 7/10
9. "Sailing Seas" - Another very nice gem on this disk. Sailing seas has a great beat, it's very catchy and the lyrics are great. Couldn't ask for too much more from an AP song. 9.5/10
10. "Renegade" - I Feel like I'm on a pirate ship under a stary night sky when i hear this song. Not Sure Why. But then the chorus kicks in and speeds it up alot and seems like mabye another placebo-like song. I love it. 9/10
11. "Mabye Then Someday" - When you hit track 11, I think you should know that the last two songs are very powerfull love songs with pianos, violins and great melodies. " I will pull apart my bones, to fuel the fire to keep you warm, and if that's not enough, well then that's ok." Great Great Great song. 11/10
12. "Goodbye Song" - This one breaks my heart. Just as good as Mabye Then Someday. "If this is the end of us, I'll sing you this goodbye song, If your a lonely girl, you might as well come on home." There are violins, breakdowns and amazing vocals.And the song clocks in at a 6:30. 11/10
Overall Armed To The Teeth is an album fans of old and new AP will enjoy if not more than humanistic. Deffinatly pick it up.
Overall rating 9/10....and i don't rate easily."
Great!
L. McCollum | Austin TX | 09/29/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Good music is not dead just hard to find, like this gem from Abandoned Pools. I really enjoyed their last album Humanistic and this one takes there interesting sound to the next level. This is how modern music should sound.
Sounds Like:
Smashing Pumpkins
Garbage
Muse"
One of the most underrated albums of the year
F. Berlen | Staten Island, NY | 12/25/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"i usually don't write on these things (im actually against it b/c who cares what other people think as long as you connect w/ it) but i thought i would write one about this cd just in case people were on the fence about it.
Aside from the lyrics, the best thing about this album is that it really is an album; it doesn't have one song that stands out above the rest; they are all equally good and as a result it makes for a great listen start to finish. So basically, if you don't consider yourself a "singles only" kind of person, this is the one for you. what else can i say except sample all the songs...you might like them all."
Tommy's new sound: two thumbs up!
Dustin French | St. Charles, MO United States | 01/16/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Humanistic was an interesting album in that half the songs were hard-edged rockers and the other half light-hearted pop numbers. Every song was pretty much the same, structurally; but it was still light years ahead of any other mainstream release for its time. Several years later, Tommy gives us something new: the Reverb EP and Armed to the Teeth LP. The new stuff is different than Humanistic, still I don't see how a fan of one album can dislike the other.
Whereas Humanistic contained two radically different styles of music (listen to Ruin Your Life immediately after LVBD), Armed to the Teeth is a product of mixing both styles into one. A bad thing? Certainly not...I believe the album deserves four solid stars.
The most important quality of the album though, is varying song structures. You'll still sense the occassional pop-like structure in the songs, but Tommy has made a giant leap in terms of songwriting. The album doesn't grow old on me the way Humanistic does.
Bad points of the album? Josh Freese is gone (not that Tommy's new drummer is bad...but c'mon, Josh is one of the best in the business). And the new version of Tighter Noose is about half as good as the one we downloaded years ago.
My favorite song: Sooner or Later. I love the structural progression and long(ish) instrumental segments scattered throughout. This song is a great example of Tommy's growth as a songwriter and musician, it's not just verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus, as is the case for every song on Humanistic.
It's an extremely high-quality album, an incredible sophomore effort. It comes VERY close to a five-star rating, and possibly deserves one, but I like to save that rating for truly special albums."
The universe breaks my heart...
John Storx | Hungary | 12/15/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Amazing album! A clear, shining treasure.
Fantastic start with 'LETHAL KILLERS' that has the rhythm and melody to stick in your head and heart right after first hearing.
'RABBLE' and 'THE CATALYST' set a wondeful mood with open minded lyrics and open-air music.
I was waiting to hear an album version of the song 'TIGHTER NOOSE', and I'm not disappointed at all. Breathtaking how all the instruments come together in this one, making the darkest and coldest song of the album.
I can't stop listening to 'SAILING SEAS' over and over... at first it sounds like it was a happy tune with bouncy bass, but the lyrics and the lead guitar's reverbing (almost crying at the end) sound makes it sad and thought-provoking.
'RENEGADE' is surreal and dark with a bit angry chorus but still, makes a harmonic and sweet song before the album's last chapter:
'MAYBE THEN SOMEDAY' is a peaceful, bright but sad love song with brilliant emotional, and a bit painful lyrics about caring, love and uncertainty.
The album ends with the saddest love song I've ever heard, 'GOODBYE SONG'. Right from the start its melody touches heart, and as it floats, the lyrics seem to lose all hope and fall into despair. The ending vocals of the song are heartbraking:
"I'm busting at the seams,
to tell you everything..,
and it's scary because
nothing's sure and nothing makes sense anymore..."
Tommy Walter's vocals are perfectly clear, reverbing guitar sounds, lovely strings and chorus parts come together very well, making the album of the year! Masterpiece. Recommended to all emo indie and alternative lovers!"