Rise Against - Ricochet (August 15th, 2025) Album • Page 14

I don't think working with a different producer was a bad idea, but I think that in every single song released so far, Tim sounds flat for extended points in a way that makes them not appealing to listen to. I dunno, maybe at this point there seems to be a pattern of otherwise talented producers failing to capture Tim's vocals.

Hell, I was excited when I saw Marks' resume next to the words "upcoming Rise Against album"! I listened to the live version of I Want It All on repeat. The studio version fails to capture the energy. The whole thing so far has big square peg / round hole energy.

The guitar part at the beginning of Ricochet is cute, and sounds like a Marks addition, or at least the band trying something new. That's cool, but the song as a whole doesn't grab me. I had The Numbers pop on on shuffle not long ago and it's hooks for days. That's been missing so far.

I'll give the album a listen, but I've gone from hyped to see where they go after Nowhere Generation to being completely flat. Not unlike Tim's vocals. Rimshot.

 

Boy.

Rise Against – ‘RICOCHET’

On one hand, I love seeing that the songs themselves might rule. But as a recorded experience, reading the words “harsh” and “bad” over and over makes me groan.

This might be their “Damage,” which absolutely sucks!

 

I’m 4/4 on this so far which seems to be a hot take. I think “Ricochet” sounds really cool and different for them, “I Want it All” was also a different vibe. I don’t think “Nod” or “Prizefighter” sound all that different to what I expect from RA. My only gripe is I feel like I’ve been waiting for it forever! Also seems bold to drop the first 3 tracks and closer as pre-release. That’s just personal preference though.

 

Anybody surprised by the songwriting here hasn't been listening to Rise Against for the last decade, TBH. If anything I think leaning harder into the "pure radio-rock" of their sound works better for them here than trying to straddle the line like they sometimes do. And some of the production choices/flourishes are actually pretty cool.

The songs themselves are catchy and I can hear how they'd go over pretty well live ("I Want It All" and "Ricochet" in particular; those songs go). But there's something about the mix or whatever here that's throwing it for me. It sounds a bit too treble-y when things get loud. It might grow on me over time but for now... I dunno... I'm not feeling it.

But I know I'll listen to the album day of release, regardless so I'm hoping that'll change my mind. LOL

 

My ears hate this for lots of reasons

 

In the interests of balance I really like this performance

 

Soldier is prolly the best song on this entire thing.

 

Nod 6/10
I Want It All 1/10
Ricochet 3/10
Damage Is Done 5/10
Us Against The World 3/10
Black Crown 3/10
Sink Like A Stone 3/10
Forty Days 4/10
State Of Emergency 5/10
Gold Long Gone 4/10
Soldier 5/10
Prizefighter 5/10

Complete lack of energy and power in the songs, no fast parts, no cool leads, out of tune reverb hell vocals. Most songs would probably score 1-2 more points with decent (listenable) production.

 

These invalidate all of the rest of your "scores".

 

Weird, because "I Want It All" has a lot of energy. Strange that you missed that.

 

nah those are both about right

 

Right, both Elder and myself. Both about right. ;)

 

Halfway through this and nothing reallt stands out.

 

Drunk dad with sideburns and cowboy boots energy.

It's the worst song I've ever heard by a band I've liked for 20+ years.

 

Their worst album overall for me.

 

I don't think everything they try on this works, but I at least liked more than I disliked on my first run through. There's no way it's worse than Wolves.

Joe's bass sounds awesome, especially on "Sink Like a Stone." The Andy Hull feature is pretty cool. I like that they're playing with synths and keyboards more than ever. Looking forward to getting the lyrics tomorrow because there are quite a few moments where Tim really does get lost.

 

To each their own, but to me worst case scenario it sounds like Foo Fighters, which is a pretty great band to emulate for one song.

 

As a 43-year old father of 3, I am 100% here for the Rise Against dad-rock era.

 

I don't find any of the songs genuinely bad, I just think they are boring and to me thats worse. It kind of sapped the energy out of me. Listening to it on one of my daily walks was a mistake. I'm going to give this another chance in a different scenario.

 

I get that it sounds somewhat like, say, All My Life but in my view Foos songs are far better written than this eg with actual choruses, more cohesive dynamics, anthemic qualities. All of which I find this to be lacking.

 

I share this view.

 

Boring and energy-sapping are terms I never thought I’d hear used to describe RA.

 

This thing must really take a nosedive on tracks 4-11 because I can't describe any of the pre-release tracks as boring or energy-sapping.

 

People hate Wolves?

 

Yeah I was just wondering that too...I think it's a great album, but I think folks didn't like the production/mixing choices. Doesn't bother me though, sounds less polished/rawer.