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'Ocean Avenue' is the 2004 album from the American Pop Punk band Yellowcard. Although fitting snugly into the genre of Pop Punk, the band actually incorporate a violin into their sound and this is something that makes them stand out a little from the crowd. When you listen to the music of Yellowcard it is not your standard Pop Punk affair and therefore their music is all the more interesting to listen to.
The first track I ever heard from this album was 'Life of a Salesman', a track that initially put me off listening to 'Ocean Avenue' as I was not at all a fan of what I heard. With 'Life of a Salesman' there is just too much going on within the track at once and as a result it all seems a little congested as the band progress their way through this three minute piece of Pop Punk. The drums just don't seem to fit with the guitars on this one, each seems to be going in its own direction and the track just sounds messy. I gain little to no enjoyment from listening to this track and it is without a doubt my least favourite from the album. Although the first track I ever heard from 'Ocean Avenue' was potentially more than enough to put me off
listening to the album, I eventually did so due to the recommendation of a good friend of mine. They too had the same opinion of the 'Life of a Salesman' track, however assured me that the rest of the tracks were a lot better than this and that the 'Ocean Avenue' was well worth me listening to.
Upon the recommendation of my friend, I did exactly as he'd said and gave the album a go; something that I did not regret at all. There is some great music present on the 'Ocean Avenue' album and although it is by no means one of my favourites, it still possesses a fair few tracks I feel to be of an exceptionally high quality. The title track for instance is a definite favourite of mine from this release and is one that I have listened to many times over the years. 'Ocean Avenue' is a track in possession of a great guitar riff, fantastic chorus and the super vocal styling that we have come to expect of Yellowcard over the course of their six studio albums which span a period of over a decade. It truly is a terrific track and is one that I would without a shadow of a doubt recommend to all.
As well as the title track, other tracks which spring to mind as highlights from the 'Ocean Avenue' album are closing track 'Back Home' and the fantastic 'Empty Apartment'. 'Back Home' provides the album with the most explosive of closers and is an excellent track which leaves you craving for more from the band and wishing that the album had not come to such an abrupt end. It is not a closer in the conventional sense as closing tracks tend to have a habit of winding things down, whereas 'Back Home' seems to show no signs at all of winding down, in fact if anything it speeds things up one final time and in my opinion this works brilliantly. Sometimes when closing tracks are slow paced it can provide an album with a disappointing ending as it can be somewhat of an anti-climax, however this is certainly not the case with the 'Ocean Avenue' album as 'Back Home' truly provides the album with a vigorous and explosive end. 'Empty Apartment' on the other hand is perhaps more of a conventional closing track than the closing track itself, despite only being the forth track in on the album. Although 'Empty Apartment' has a slower pace than much of the rest of the album, it is no less enjoyable than any of the other twelve tracks on this release and is in fact a clear and definite highlight for me when I listen to the 'Ocean Avenue' album. There is just something about this one, a key ingredient which makes the track hugely pleasing and massively appealing.
Throughout the album, the use of the violin makes the sound of Yellowcard extremely fresh and thoroughly enjoyable to listen to. Although Yellowcard have only changed the typical Pop Punk formula in the slightest, this extra instrument included definitely makes them a little bit special as it adds character and depth to the band I feel. It is hard to listen to this release without being impressed by the way in which the violin is implemented, however that said; on some of the tracks you just get the feeling that the instrument was not required really as the extra sound just seems to over complicate things and detract from the overall listening experience as a result, 'Life of a Salesman' being a prime example of where this is the case.
Although 'Ocean Avenue' will probably never become one of your favourite albums of all time, it is still sure to raise a smile or two whilst you give it a listen. There are tracks that let the album down, this is true; but do not let this put you off giving the album a try as the album does have some strong positives to be drawn from it also. Although 'Ocean Avenue' is now over three years old, it is no less relevant today in the genre of Pop Punk than it was when released and is still one that I would recommend due to the sheer fact that there are some terrific tunes here present in this release.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Advantages: There is a track for everyone on this album. All have different sounds Disadvantages: Some weak links. One of the songs remind me of a Good Charlotte song
Jan 29th, 2008
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