The temptation to abort this review was pretty severe. If it weren’t for the fact that I received a free promotional copy, I wouldn’t have bothered picking it up at all. But since my AAR experience had been thus far limited to a couple of popular singles, I didn’t think it was fair that I avoided them simply because I wasn’t too impressed by the two tracks I’d actually heard. But before half of this new album was over, I knew it wasn’t going to get any better, but also that the fault was almost as much mine as it was theirs. I certainly wouldn’t say that these guys are good necessarily, but the fact that I’m not attuned to them unfairly hurts their credibility in my mind.
I’m sure there’s an audience for the All-American Rejects, but I’m not it. I suspect mostly teens, but I could be off by as many as four or five years. I make this perhaps unfair judgment based on how I regarded their first singles from their last two records. “Swing, Swing” was a harmless confection, kinda catchy and really hollow—the sort of song I’d never intentionally subject myself to but if it came roaring out of a jukebox, I wouldn’t be inclined to clear out of the room. Then, after I aged a few years, there was “Dirty Little Secret,” a song that couldn’t even climb to the heights of tepid, and since then I’ve been lucky enough to (mostly) avoid it. I’d probably think the same of the other two hits from that second album if I was able to recognize them by name (I can’t). And now there’s When the World Comes Down, which is neither dauntingly awful nor remotely worthy. I can’t blame anyone for liking this sort of unambitious fluff, but I’d love to give those guys and/or gals a few recommendations for much better options to fill the pop/rock void.
So I must play the role of the out-of-touch “old” dude who can’t figure why kids are laughing at talking Chihuahuas or swooning over some vacant-eyed vampire heartthrob. For the most part, this is utterly inoffensive stuff, but for a third effort, the total lack of maturity makes me realize that I’ll almost certainly never like their songwriting style. It’s usually competent, sure, but why hasn’t the band grown up like their older fans no doubt have? They add a few new tricks here and there, but a polished cowpie with candy sprinkles is still a…well, you know.
Which brings me to my quandary—is it the role of a critic to be honest about how it struck them or discern what it’s audience is and make concessions? Should I just give When the World Comes Down a pass because it’s just not “my style?” It’s not that I can’t recognize what I don’t like about it—or what about it is pretty lousy regardless of audience or genre. It’s that there’s really no point to it. People who would agree with me wouldn’t be inclined to picking up this album anyway and those who disagree won’t be swayed by anything I write because I’m not “speaking their language.” So I must trudge on and give an honest reaction, knowing full well that I’m preaching to my choir but that the band’s fans belong to a congregation across town.
Starting things off, “I Wanna” is a manipulative pop-rocker, with the kind of sugary hook-heavy melody that never quite grabs hold—the fact that it tries and whiffs, though, makes it a noble effort on AAR’s part. Lyrically, it evinces only the rolling of eyes. “I wanna, I wanna, I wanna touch you/You wanna touch me, too/Everyday, but all I have is time/Our love's the perfect crime.” Fodder for giggly teens? I can forgive them for that. But anyone else better just keep looking. “Mona Lisa” is worse; it doesn’t even work on the level of ‘tween angst. “You can sit beside me when the world comes down/If it doesn't matter then just turn around/We don't need our bags/And we can just leave town.” Right…
Before long, I began to yearn for the arrangement simplicity of “I Wanna.” Whenever they soup up tracks with little additions, only winces greet their maneuvers. “Fallin’ Apart” is even less melodically sound than that first cut, and that fiddle sounds sampled straight off of “Come on Eileen.” “Real World” takes sonic screwball inspiration from Garbage—and butchers it. Then it adds church bells (yikes). “Another Heart Calls” steals from (believe it or not) artists as different as Dido, Bon Jovi and New Kids on the Block. These efforts to make things “interesting” give credence to the relatively bland-but-straightforward “Back to Me”; comparably, it’s almost refreshing.
The wretched first single ”Gives You Hell” is 90s AOR cotton candy—some unholy hybrid of Sugar Ray, Lit and Smash Mouth—featuring a “Beverly Hills” shout-along stomp late in the game to make you shake your head hopelessly. Add to that the utterly uninspired words and you have one of the few songs that ought to be awful no matter your age or tolerance for generic rock music. Along with “Another Heart Calls” and the howlingly overproduced 80s-tinged power ballad, “The Wind Blows,” they represent the record’s nadir—even those who vibe to the same wavelength can’t defend them and not deserve scorn.
But, hey, what do I know? It’s not “me.” For all I know, fans will get what they want from When the World Comes Down and more. It might be exactly what they want. Maybe this turgid effort is actually their best album to date. Don’t take my word for it. I’ve probably just outgrown this sort of ultra-obvious and reality-oblivious junk food. But if you’re attuned to this sort of thing, I hope you have a great time. You can probably safely add two or three points to my score (which has already been curved up a notch to account for a different generation’s taste). They’re certainly not the worst option out there for your sensibility. Just don’t be shocked if in three years time you look back and wonder what the hell you (or they) were thinking.
