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From the Vault...
10/15/2017
#1590 |
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info
Relient K
"Forget And Not Slow Down"
© RCA/Jive Records
Rating:
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track listing
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Forget And Not Slow Down
I Don't Need A Soul
Candlelight
Flare (Outro)
Part Of It
(Outro)
Therapy
Over It
Sahara
Oasis
Savannah
Baby (Outro)
If You Believe Me
This Is The End
(If You Want It)
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Relient K
"Forget And Not Slow Down"
Relient K debuts this week with their 2009 release, Forget And Not Slow Down; their sixth career album. Relient K is a Christian Rock band,
Their music can also be classified as punk rock and alternative. Green Day comes to mind in comparing their music, and maybe a bit of Dave Matthews.
For Chicago radio fans, this band could be part of the format of WXRT FM.
Whether it be Christian, punk or Alternative, this is really a Rock album. Each song is upbeat, constant moving, and quite honestly, this is a band
that can easily be well-liked and followed regularly, as their sound keeps on the up and up.
By 2009, the band's longtime drummer, Dave Douglas had left the band. Forget And Not Slow Down is the first album since Douglas' departure, as
he left in 2007. He was replaced by Ethan Luck. Ethan Luck was his replacement as the drummer for the band. The album is also the first Relient K album
with Mono Vs Stereo and their first on Jive Records. The album was produced by Mark Lee Townsend and mixed by Andy Wallace.
The Relient K bandmembers for this album: Matthew Thiessen, Matt Hoopes, John Warne, Jon Schneck, and Ethan Luck.
In reading other reviews, Forget And Not Slow Down seemed to be point the band in a much more better direction. Their music was more polished.
Gone were the (as the critics described it) "ridiculous, palm-muted chords, and memorable, delay-ridden guitar riffs." And, the "anti-climatic predictable
drumming of the past") -- They now had a new drummer. Lead vocalist Matt Theissen's would also become more important, having a much better singing voice.
And, yes, it is true, his voice does stand out on this album, making it much more enjoyable, and easily fitting other music genre formats. Fans were
extremely surprised in the band's sound on Forget, as compared to their previous release in 2007, Five Score And Seven Years Ago. Take it as
the band was growing up, as the band members were in their 30s. As part of growing up, is the experiences of relationships.
On that topic, the overall theme of this album was based on Matt Theissen's break up with his fiance earlier in the year. He was engaged to radio
host Shannon Murphy (WKQI 95.5's Mojo In The Morning Show, Detroit).
The breakup went quietly, yet Murphy did voice what had happened with "an ex-boyfriend who had cheated on her." She did not mention a name, but people did
make the connection, that is was Matt Theissen. Though this did happen, she did not mention anything negative about him, as in ranting, or to announce
anything revengeful, or anything that maybe been threatening as well.
Yet on a positive note, instead of most songs from an artist who've experienced a breakup, it would result in angry tunes (Taylor Swift), but in
Theissen's case, he would look back in anger, but instead, with nostalgia and a futuristic look ahead.
The lyrics on the title track basically says it: I'd rather forget and not slow down/Then gather regret for the things I can't change now/If I
become what I can't accept/Resurrect the saint from within the wretch/Pour over me and wash my hands/Pour over me and wash my hands
(Again, we're also seeing the band Relient K as a Christian Rock band; therefore there would be no negativity, no threats, no hate, no revenge.
Don't look back in anger, but look back and remember nostalgically the good times, look to the future ahead.)
The overall sound of this album is quite impressive. "Sahara" is probably the most standout. Most bands of the 1990s will get the comparison
throughout the album. Bands such as the Foo Fighters, ("Sahara"); Dave Matthews Band ("Over It") And then there's a 180 turnaround on
"Savannah" -- almost classical, and another fine moment from the album.
From the album's Wikipedia page:
Influences for the record are bands like Counting Crows and Foo Fighters. Matt Thiessen stated in an interview with Pollstar, "We definitely wanted to
make a rock record. We wanted it to be uptempo and energetic. As far as the sonic aspect, we wanted to make it less modern sounding, with classic rock
textures – Counting Crows, Foo Fighters, those kind of ‘90s albums. That was a good time for rock ‘n’ roll." Matt Hoopes has also stated "The songs that
tend to be the fan favorites in the past are the ones about making mistakes but ultimately moving past them and this record has a lot of that feeling.
No matter what trials you encounter in your life, it doesn't have to be the end of your story. You can move on and be happy and experience joy."
Forget And Not Slow Down is definitely a ROCK album. It's a Christian Rock album. It's looking ahead. Forget And Not Slow Down basically
is to move on, and not your life slow down because of it. Although it was hard, especially cheating involved for Shannon Murphy. Hopefully she can
forget and not let it slow her down. Well, maybe not... On the Mojo in the Morning program, there is a feature called "War of the Roses," where Shannon
calls a significant other who is believed to be cheating. She pretends to be a florist offering a dozen free roses to be sent to the person of his or her
choosing, with the possibility for the potentially unfaithful partner to send the flowers to the wrong person. Another feature by her is "Dirty on the
Thirty," which is a celebrity gossip segment. This could be either good news or bad.
Relient K's Forget And Not Slow Down spent one week at #1, on Billboard's Christian Albums Chart, in October, 2009. Relient K had a total of
two #1 albums prior to 2009, and one afterwards.
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RCA/Jive Records
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