Faster Faster - Hopes and Dreams

Rating

single starsingle starsingle starsingle star

RIYL

All Time Low
Motion City Soundtrack
Fall Out Boy
Mayday Parade

Tracklist

1. Drawn To You, Sweetheart
2. Girl Named Gasoline
3. Backstabbing Never Seemed So Friendly
4. To Whom It May Concern
5. They Call It Lust, We Call It A Good Time
6. Matchsticks Don't Make Men
7. Fairytales and Lullabies
8. A Moment In Sheets
9. From My TV Sceen To Your Bedroom
10. Forever...
11. ...And Always
12. These Are The Days

Users Rating

single starsingle starsingle star
1 rating

Your Rating

Create an account or log in to rate this album

Recent Ratings

To call yourself a pop punk fan in 2008 is somewhat different to making the same claim in the early 2000's. For instance, if you turned up with spiked hair, Dickies and checkered Vans to a 'pop punk' show today, don't be expecting to go home with a pocketful of girls' digits. Early 2000's inspiration? T. Delonge. 2008? T-Pain.

Faster Faster would certainly be considered by most as 'pop punk', but succeed where many other acts fail in straddling the extremes of the genre, and combining the old with the new, and the nu with the neu. On debut album Hopes & Dreams, the band certainly employ some of the more fashionable aspects of pop punk as it is today: bubbly synths and gang vocals appear on a number of tracks, yet a lot of their sound is firmly rooted in the classic pop punk vein. Naturally, the dual vocal aspect employed by the band draws comparisons to Mayday Parade, yet the band manage to steer clear of letting the similarities influence any thoughts the listener may have of them.

The main selling point of Faster Faster is their decision to not stick with one sound, or rely on what is currently getting bands a Glamour Kills sponsorship (though the band wouldn't be out of place on their illustrious roster). Instead the band race through a variety of styles, from All Time Low straight up pop on opener "I'm Drawn To You Sweetheart", old school Motion City Soundtrack on "Backstabbing Never Seemed So Friendly" and finger-snapping, double bass on "They Call it Lust, We Call it a Good Time". The only drawback is that the band's youthful nature shows through at times in their somewhat naively generic lyrics, but conversely some songs have excellent couplets worthy of Pete Wentz himself.

Usually with a band breezing through a variety of styles and genres without an anchoring brand of their own, I would ask for some kind of quest to discover their own 'identity' on album number two, but Faster Faster have actually bypassed the usual pitfalls and made an album that genuinely has mass appeal to all those that enjoy the catchier aspects of music. There are definite echoes of Take This To Your Grave-era Fall Out Boy. And whilst Hopes & Dreams might not reach the same benchmark status as that disc, it certainly shows an abundance of promise.

--Alex Davies

Last updated: 09/29/2009 09:01PM

Comments

Rick Gebhardt
10/07/2008
06:57AM
Age: 31
Location
Minnesota
This isn't really in my usual listening categories, but it was passable nonetheless. I didn't turn it off right away and for this genre, that means they're doing something at least ok.

Find me EVERYWHERE:

viggie55
10/08/2008
10:06PM
Location
Hotlanta
this band rocks! their new music is so fun and they're a tight nit band on stage! can't wait for them to blow up! they're comin' to my home town in ATL!! woohoo!

[FONT=Georgia]Again I'm here alone, Again I rise to the occassion, Again I show you I'm forever.[/FONT]