Album Review

Bad Religion - True NorthBad Religion – True North

Bad Religion are set to release their sixteenth studio album ‘True North’ on the 22nd January and if the rumours are true it could well be their last album release and if it is they are going out in good style as ‘True North’ is yet another solid album for the band.

When it comes to Bad Religion albums you pretty much know what you are going to get before you even press play and this is exactly the case with ‘True North’ as the album features the same classic sound the band have stuck to throughout the years and it also flows in the same way as any other Bad Religion album with 16 tracks running for 2 or 3 minutes.

The album opens with the title track ‘True North’ which is a song about a kid who is running away because they feel that they don’t fit in anywhere and want to find their purpose, and moments like this show that despite the fact that Bad Religion are getting older they will never forget where they came from and never forget how they felt when they were kids and growing up, musically the song is very much like any classic Bad Religion material in the way that it is a straight forward punk song with Greg Graffin still having the knack of getting you hooked into his unique vocals within seconds.

‘Fuck You’ is a massive highlight on the album as it is full of punk attitude and features Greg Graffin shouting out “let’s say fuck you woaaah” in such an fast and meaningful way and the guitar solo at the 1minute 40seconds mark is a much welcome peace of instrumental work.

As soon as ‘Fuck You’ finishes Bad Religion blast into some outstanding instrumental work as ‘Dharma And The Bomb’ opens up, as the song progresses it becomes quite catchy yet slightly repetitive at the same time leaving you thinking something was missing. Whilst I am on the topic of bad moment on the album ‘Hello Cruel World’ feels extremely out of place, the song happens to be the longest running track on the album clocking in at 3minutes and 50seconds but it is just so slow paced and the slowness does not suit the band at all and it is oddly placed in-between fast songs.

Songs like ‘Vanity’, ‘In Their Hearts Is Right’, Nothing To Dismay’ and ‘Changing Tide’ are all solid sounding songs which help make ‘True North’ a well balanced album as it features 7 or 8 killer songs which are easily going to be fan favourites, a few average sounding songs and a couple of songs that are truly filler and shouldn’t of been included on the album in the first place.

Overall ‘True North’ is Bad Religion sticking to what they do best; it may not be their strongest album but it is another positive offering.

4/5

Review by Trigger

 Band Members

Greg Graffin
Brett Gurewitz
Greg Hetson
Jay Bentley
Brian Baker
Brooks Wackerman
 Track Listing
1. True North
2. Past is Dead
3. Robin Hood in Reverse
4. Land of Endless Greed
5. Fuck You
6. Dharma and the Bomb
7. Hello Cruel World
8. Vanity
9. In Their Hearts is Right
10. Crisis Time
11. Dept. of False Hope
12. Nothing To Dismay
13. Popular Consensus
14. My Head is Full of Ghosts
15. The Island
16. Changing Tide
 Band Related Links
Bad Religion Facebook
 Review Score Code
- Top Cheese
- Brilliant
- Pretty damn good
- Ok I guess
- What Was That?