New Found Glory - Not Without A Fight (12 tracks) +Album Reviews

NFG's Triumphant Return - Tell Your Friends!

Cory T. Shaeffer | Pittsburgh | 03/10/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"More than a hot second has passed since New Found Glory released their two most popular albums in terms of sales, 2002's dynamic "Sticks and Stones" and 2004's equally impressive effort "Catalyst." Prior to that, the band had already established itself on the scene with hits such as "Hit or Miss." But after 2004, the band took a different, more creative path. The 2006 album "Coming Home" was a melodic, atmospheric, and engaging affair, but some of NFG's long time fans were not pleased with the longer, slower songs that were prevalent on the album. As a result, it produced weaker sales. The band released a covers album in 2007, which was okay, and then an EP "Tip of the Iceberg," which was ambitious, but did not sound like anything the band had done before.

Now that the band members are approaching 30 (as most of their fan base now is as well), a change was in order. And what a change it is. Returning to their pop-punk roots, NFG comes up with a great set of songs that sound as if they could have been recorded sometime between their 2002 and 2004 albums that were big hits. The first single "Listen to Your Friends" is their catchiest song in years, if not ever. Other songs rock with the same confidence and melody, such as "47" and "Don't Let Her Pull You Down." Also, "Tangled" is a great track that is classic NFG and yet sounds unlike all their other tracks. Out of twelve songs, only one song lacks a killer hook. Eleven out of twelve tracks are excellent.

No hit or miss here. This album hits the mark, resonating with a newfound vigor, a newfound purpose, and newfound energy. And the songs stick in your head for DAYS after you hear them. If you are looking for an album that not only will restore your faith in pop-punk, but melodic rock in general, pick this up. And play it loud - it will make your day."

Listen To Your Friends and Buy This Album!

Flap Jackson | State Road, NC | 03/10/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"10 years after "Hit or Miss," New Found Glory has been mostly hit, but has lately been amiss. Enter a return to form album that does just that, and returns the band to an Old Found Glory. Musically, the album mostly takes its cues from its classic "Catalyst," and "Sticks and Stones" albums with a little hint from "Coming Home," and the same could be said for the album's familiar lyrics. Highlights include the insanely catchy and worthy addition to their best of, "Listen to Your Friends," "47," "Tangled Up," "Reasons," "Such A Mess," "Heartless At Best," "This Isn't You"...

To avoid listing most, if not all the tracks from the album, let me say it's all classic NFG, it's consistent, it's catchy, it carries all the classic themes of summer, break-ups and high school drama. In fact, you could say that this is another example of the 'NFG sound,' where the music never slows, because the band never wants you to turn down the volume. Every time I hear this album, I seem to find more of a place for it in their catalog, and come to enjoy the album that much more. So overall, NFG fans and pop punk fans are going to be all over it, and it'll certainly find a place in my stereo for the foreseeable future. So listen to your friends and buy this album!

And I can't help but think that the opening and closing song titles are statements by the band... just a guess there.

"

You can go back, but its never the same

Cato | 04/29/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"The reviews of this album I have seem tend to be of the "it effing rules" or "it effing sucks" varierty. Like most things in life, the truth is right in the middle.

I grew up listening to NFG in high school and college and have eagerly awaited this album. Although I grew to like their last album artistically, I was hoping for them to return to their roots and was expecting a cornucopia of old-school power hits on this album. Alas, like attending a high school reunion or visiting your old fraternity, this album is proof that while you can go back to visit the haunts of your youth, it is never quite the same.

I gave this album 3 stars because while this album is better than scores of the manufactured and easily forgotten emo, pop-punk these days, I think this album is by far NFG's weakest album. While none of the songs on this album are per se bad, there is not much that is really good or memorable either. That is not to say say the album is not worth listening to. Don't get me wrong, its a decent album, with a few potential hit singles, but on a whole its just not up to the caliber of their previous efforts.

My biggest complaint is the almost complete absence of catchy guitar hooks. While the album is reminiscent of what was, it never quite achieves the energy and power of their previous efforts. Many songs just seem bland. There are not many songs that made me immediately start singing along. Also, I am one of the few who actually liked the distinctly nasally vocals on the previous albums. I also don't like the overuse of gang screams. At points, this CD sounds like an old Fall Out Boy album.

If you like NFG, I would still recommend this album, but don't expect a CD crammed with "My Friends Over You" or Catalyst-type hits."

A Return to Form...

Andrew | North Carolina | 03/11/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album is one of NFG's best. My personal favorite is still their self titled pop punk classic, but this is not far behind. This feels a lot like Sticks and Stones, and that is a good thing. I used to love this band, but after Catalyst, I started losing interest in NFG (not that Catalyst was a bad record, but it didn't hold up as well as their previous releases). After listening to a friend's copy of Coming Home, I was pretty disappointed - I didn't like the new direction the band was heading in.

Scrap all that - with Not Without A Fight, NFG is back to their old ways, putting out pop punk anthems like "Right Where We Left Off" and "Listen to Your Friends."

I also have give it up for my man Mark Hoppus, who was the producer of this record. He did a great job.

Overall, this is a return to form for NFG, and this is an album I will be rockin' all summer."

Kept Together by Highways and Telephone Lines

Derek | Papillion, NE | 03/10/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I just bought the album last night at Wal-Mart in Lincoln, Nebraska. I was holding off listening to the streamed version on NFG's Myspace because I wanted the experience of hearing the first track blare through my speakers on the road.

This CD delivers. It is New Found Glory true to form. It fits conceptually between "Sticks and Stones" and "Catalyst". I personally loved "Coming Home," and wouldn't have minded if that was the direction New Found Glory decided to turn for good. I liked to think of them "aging gracefully". 'Boulders' is one of my all-time favorite tracks, and that CD will always be a milestone in my eyes.

What I think when I hear "Not Without a Fight" is what a great array of albums this band is going to have accrued by the time they retire. They've all got their own stamps of individuality, and what "NWAF" offers is a conceptual set of songs that all intertwine with one another in a 36-minute web of pop-punk.

1) Right Where We Left Off - 10/10. So far my favorite song on this CD. The first 5 seconds offer a hook that will be stuck in your head for days. It's a bit darker, but the perfect way to start an album.

2) Don't Let Her Pull You Down 9/10 - This song seems to epitomize what it feels like to be driving down the highway in the middle of summer, at its hottest and most sluggish, with the windows down and the air breezing in.

3) Listen To Your Friends - 9/10. This song is the first single, and probably has the most diverse set of lyrics on the album. Reminiscent of "Hit or Miss" and "My Friends Over You." This is a song you'd lose your voice singing at a concert.

4) 47 - 8/10. Reminds me of "It's Been a Summer". I love gang vocals, but they're a bit weak on the chorus, as the band shouts, "I called 46 times!" and Jordan Pundik responds, "and you answered on the 47th." The pre-chorus is the best part of this song by far.

5) Truck Stop Blues - 10/10. It's so catchy and fast you won't know what to do with yourself the first time you hear it. This is a late-night interstate drive kind of song, that will evoke emotion in anyone who knows what it's like to miss someone who's gone away. One of the most heartfelt songs on the CD.

6) Tangled Up - 8/10. The chorus of this song is layered with vocals from Hayley Williams of Paramore. The two voices mesh seamlessly, and the chorus is insanely catchy. "Oh...I....should have never laid eyes on you."

7) I'll Never Love Again - 7/10. This starts out sounding like you're spinning on a carousel, and then the drums jump in. It's the kind of song that everyone jumps in time to at concerts...you know the ones. There's not much range in guitar on this one, it doesn't distinguish itself as well as other tracks.

8) Reasons - 9/10. This is a happier, more-upbeat version of "I Don't Wanna Know." Not lyrically, but in sound. I love the guitar in the first seconds of the song. This is that point in every CD where the craze has worn off, and the band's cooling off and easing up. When you listen to the album straight through, this song serves its purpose best.

9)Such A Mess - 7/10. I need to get used to this one. This feels like it could have come straight of the "Tip of the Iceberg" EP. I did like those songs, but like I've said, I appreciate most the diversity of the guitar and drums in music, and this one sticks to a base note for most of the song. It's a song to listen to with a crowd of friends...driving to a party, perhaps.

10) Heartless At Best - 8/10. The intro to this song sounds just like "Emma" from Alkaline Trio. Same drums, same lingering notes. It's the longest song on the CD, and is also a lyrically moving number. "The crowd silent as a whisper...listen as she recites her sins."

11)This Isn't You - 9/10. This is end-of-the-album territory. The music comes thrashing in, then moves to only one speaker, then jumps to the other, then back. It's almost sad, listening and knowing that there's only one song left. Oh well, that's what the next album's for.

12). Don't Let This Be The End - 10/10. I think there's a number of ways to successfully end a CD. It can be an epic, symphonic ballad -- like "Boulders," which employed a beautiful chorus from the singers of Eisley at the end and drifted into silence -- or you can leave swinging. DLTBTE goes for the latter. It is short, gut-punchingly catchy, and closes with the celebratory gang vocals that really shine in this CD. By the time it's over, you wonder where your 36 minutes went. My solution has been to start back over from song number one and enjoy the experience again. Lather, rinse, repeat.

This is definitely more of a conceptual album than one whose songs identify individually, like "Coming Home." But it's a breath of fresh air that proves this band is true their roots, and it is the perfect way to herald the warm spring weather just around the corner.

Go buy it NOW!"

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