Four Year Strong - Brain Pain (February 28, 2020) Album • Page 7

I go back to ISWSOF a lot. It also reminds me of Sum 41’s “Chuck” and “Does This Look Infected”.

it’s not bad at all

 

This is better than their last few albums, but not something I see myself returning to. Forgettable, but catchy at times.

 

Yeah, I'm kind of leaning here. I'm enjoying this about as much as I think I could enjoy an easycore album, which means it is fun, but it's not gonna touch my AOTY list. I would've been all over this if this album came out after EOTW.

 

i'm glad Stuck in the Middle is the one song from that record they still play just for the riff/breakdown in the bridge

 

100% agree. If this was 10 years ago, this would be more lasting but it's fine for a few listens and then throw a couple songs onto a mix for working out or something.

 

Enemy of the World was such a gateway record for me. I was a metalhead kid, and EOTW really bridged the gap for me with metal riffs in pop punk songs that led me to get into the pop punk resurgence (TWY, SYG, NFG, and other acronyms), that then led into the more emo leaning stuff (B&C, Tigers Jaw, Title Fight) that has really shaped my music taste for the last 10 years. I have a lot to be thankful for with that record, but ISWSOF absolutely destroyed any momentum they had with me.

 

As cliche as "play your old stuff" is, I still like RODT and EOTW better than their newer stuff. Riffs and hooks have just gone downhill with age, with the notable exception of GDIH for me, really loved that EP. A few things stand out on Brain Pain but I'll probably spin it once or twice more and not return to it.

 

I think Get Out Of My Head, Talking Myself In Circles and Learn To Love The Lie might be their best songs now though

 

chorus is so funny, there are always people who love bands worst albums in here.
which I think is ultimately a good thing, but it cracks me up/happens all of the time. I'm glad those albums (which a lot of the time I may write off) find fans and that people still enjoy them.

 

This reminds me so much of In Some Way, Shape, Or Form and I wish that was a compliment.

 

I haven’t been able to get Talking Myself In Circles out of my head, such a good song

 

this be growing on me big time.

 

I listened to this a few times through on vacation last week, and I don’t really understand the people who were saying this isn’t catchy.

 

It's Cool -> Mouth Full of Dirt - > Usefully Useless has been my go to start for all my runs as of late.

 

Been a constant spinner for me. Good foot tapper while I'm churning out some work.

 

Listening to this for the first time since probably the month it came out. Putney really killed it here, best production they've ever had IMO. Having a metal producer work with them was a great call.

 

They worked with Ballou on s/t so it’s not a change in mentality

 

That's a good point. I wasn't a huge fan of his work on that one though, I think FYS benefited from the cleaner production of Putney. Who did the GDIH EP? I thought that one sounded pretty good too.

EDIT: Machine, that makes sense.

 

Really? GDIH is suuuuuper compressed, there's noticeable clipping/distortion.

I've always thought Enemy of the World sounded the best. Machine killed it.

 

EOTW sounds very treble-y to me. I don't know how to properly explain that.

 

EOTW sounded best to me because it sounded the “biggest” from start to finish, without being overblown. The wall of sound on that album gives it an urgency. I can see the trebly-ness you’re talking about, think it’s mostly the guitar tones they used though

 

Yeah, it is a bit treble-heavy, but I've always liked that sound.

I agree on the wall of sound comment, EOTW sounds massive without ever being over-compressed and that is a feat. Brain Pain is great but it's kind of an anonymous sounding mix, nothing really special about it for me. It sounds big but not as big as EOTW.

 

This album still slays. First half especially