Though the album doesn’t arrive in stores until next tomorrow, ALL TIME LOW’s DIRTY WORK is already proving to be a polarizing affair for those that have heard it. The main gripe spinning in the usual circles is that the album is ‘too poppy.’ How the fuck can a pop-punk band be too poppy? Asking ALL TIME LOW to tone down the catchy hooks is like asking the ARCADE FIRE to stop catering to hipsters – it just can’t be done, because that’s what they do.
A more polished affair even by ATL standards, the band swings for the fences and knocks this one out of the park with one hell of a sugary hit. On the first single I Feel Like Dancin’, the band gets an assist from WEEZER frontman Rivers Cuomo – and like Weezer, ATL is headed for the inevitable divide between longtime fans bitching about mainstream success, while others simply sit back and enjoy the rock.
THE SOUNDS’ Maja Ivarsson makes an appearance on Guts, while remaining sadly underutilized and nearly hidden in the background. Under a Paper Moon is one of the highlights of the mid-section, while Return the Favor ventures into PANIC AT THE DISCO territory,
DIRTY WORK is essentially soundtrack-ready from front-to-back, so expect a few of these tracks to pop up on the silver screen in the near future. That forthcoming sequel to AMERICAN PIE would probably be a good place to start.
Rating: 3.5/5
