Blacklisted - No One Deserves To Be Here More Than Me
Rating
RIYL
NirvanaRuiner
Cage
Screaming Trees
Release Date
11/30/2009
Label
Deathwish Inc.Tracklist
1. Our Apartment Is Always Empty2. Everything In My Life Is For Sale
3. J.M.N. (Interlude)
4. No One Deserves To Be Here More Than Me
5. G.E.H. (Interlude)
6. The P.I.G. (The Problem Is G.)
7. I’m Trying To Disappear
8. Palisade
9. Skeletons
10. I Am Extraordinary
11. S.M.F. (Interlude)
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No One Deserves To Be Here More Than Me is one of the most difficult albums I’ve ever reviewed. Intensely personal, it is a window into the mind of a man plagued by demons, failed relationships, and self-doubt. Blacklisted have always specialized in a brutally honest take on hardcore, but each release has found them navigating different sonic waters as they move to branch out and expand their sound. The release of this record seemingly came out of nowhere, with no press or promotion to speak of, and the same could be said about the contents of the disc. There were signs of this new direction on Heavier Than Heaven, Lonelier Than God, but nothing to this extent. Blacklisted have become almost completely estranged from their old sound, currently inhabiting a veritable no-man’s land between hardcore, ’90s alternative rock, and art rock.
Blacklisted have always epitomized the grit of Philadelphia, playing crunchy, nakedly emotional music. This record has several layers of grime caked on top of each other and is utterly bleak in outlook. But it seems as if something is lacking. Most notably, of course, is the heaviness of their earlier work. Only three or four songs on this record even faintly resemble the Blacklisted of even one album ago. I understand the need for progression, and Blacklisted have always evolved their sound out of the traditional hardcore template, but perhaps they have gone too far this time. Everything about this effort feels uncertain; perhaps it is a reflection of vocalist George Hirsch’s tortured state of mind, but it could also be that the band finds themselves inhabiting very unfamiliar territory.
No One Deserves To Be Here More Than Me offers up plenty of surprises. There are the three avant-garde interludes—a backdrop of noise punctuated by the occasional strings or trumpet or piano. There’s “The P.I.G. (The Problem Is G.),” a quietly despairing number that finds Blacklisted going acoustic. A violin crops up to great effect in “Our Apartment Is Always Empty.” There are female vocal accompaniments, the Nirvana-esque “Everything in My Life Is for Sale” and “Skeletons,” and “I Am Extraordinary” is a track that carries the weight of bitter irony and a sonic texture wholly unlike anything this band has attempted before.
This experimentation is very hit-or-miss; tracks like “Our Apartment Is Always Empty,” “Everything in My Life Is for Sale,” and “Palisade” are rousing successes. But for every success there is an abject failure (see: “The P.I.G. (The Problem Is G.)”). I was absolutely thrilled with the progression of the band on Heavier Than Heaven, but they seem to have gone too far in another direction. In their quest to explore new musical territory they’ve abandoned the core of their identity. It’s difficult to listen to this album and not think of the squandered potential that was hinted at with Heaven. Ultimately this record proved to be a letdown, as this band has been one of hardcore’s standard-bearers for the last five years. This is likely going to be a line-in-the-sand album, where Blacklisted will have alienated much of their core following, while others will continue to grow with the band and embrace their new direction. Either way, welcome to 2009’s most joyless record.
--Jake Oliver
Comments
Lehigh Valley, PA
Excellent review Jake. I dig this album, yet I'm completely torn apart by it.
Alabama
I'm definitely going to have to check this out. I loved Heavier Than Heaven... but this review kinda scares me. I didn't even know they were working on a record.
Raleigh, NC
Alabama
It also scares me that there is nothing on their myspace off this album for me to listen to.
Los Angeles
I liked a few tracks off of this but the rest I completely hated. I can't stand his strangely pitched whine after 3 songs. I'm also tired of hardcore kids telling people that they are closed minded if they don't like this; no, I don't like it because it sounds like a pack of whiny dogs. I'm not going to like something just because it's "different".
New Jersey
Started off great, but the vocals really ruin this one.
when i see it in your eyes
i just want to go blind
Alabama
The successes on this album far outweigh the missteps. I appreciate the decision to explore new territories with this album, and for my part, I think the exploration works to accentuate the ideas that are already lyrically laid bare. As is evident in the lyrics, it would be an understatement to say that the man's mind is stuck in a constant state of turmoil and indecision; therefore, an album that musically incorporates both traits is only befitting.
Los Angeles
Everyone keeps lauding this album because of it's "intensely personal lyrics" and the honesty that the band shows. Horse shit. He wrote a bunch of shitty poems and refers to himself in every song in the first person tense. Sure, that makes it personal, but it doesn't make it well written.
Who paid you to write that comment?
Alabama
Not sure if your question at the end was directed toward me, but I'll gladly answer it. No one. Do I believe that it's the most well-written album? Not at all. However, I find your dismissal of his writing based upon his use of first person perspective to be quite laughable. You claim that the first person style does indeed make it "personal." This is ridiculous. Trust me, I can recite to you my likes and dislikes regarding mailboxes and never once open up to you in any truly emotional way. You then go on to say that his first person style does not make it well-written. No, nothing necessarily ensures that a piece is well-written. Hell, he could bombard us with an eloquent vocabulary, vivid imagery and synesthetic description and come off as the most scholarly poetic man in the world; however, if everyone thinks he's a pretentious prick, can it really be considered well-written? If you want to take some sort of misguided grammarian approach to determining whether or not an album is well-written, then we'd be canning Dylan for his lack of parallelism and his dependence upon basic sentence structure. I don't think I really want to judge a man's lyrics that way. I think the reason people are praising his lyrics on this album is simply the fact that he speaks about his own negative characteristics with little regard for self-pride. At times, listening to some of the things he says hinges on being a bit voyeuristic, and I honestly believe a lot of people enjoy hearing someone say out loud those often hidden feelings.
Don't take any of what I said as being a direct slight to you. It's just been a long time since I've seen some real heated debate around here.I love the fact that you don't accept the praise at face value. Anyone up for taking that message to the Nickleback message boards?
Minnesota
Oddly, with heavy music, I tend to give little focus to lyrics. It's all about the sound to me. Lyrics take a greater prominence when I'm listening to more mellow music where, at times, the lyrics are more of a song's focus instead of with heavy music. Since there's some debate about this album's lyrics, I think I might pay a bit closer attention next time I listen.
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Copperas Cove, TX
I highly disagree with the rating of this album, to me it was the best hardcore album of 2009. Nothing sounds remotely like it. It's a masterpiece in my opinion.
"Let no one know that God hasn’t any friends and if wilderness is found laid out across your heart, then child I do understand that you haven’t a clue of where to start." -Me.
Boise
Our Apartment is Always Empty-best blacklisted song ever written.
www.twitter.com/devdawg
Raleigh, NC
Definitely one of my favorites.