Album Details

• Artist: The Graduate
• Album: Anhedonia
• Label: Icon Mes
• Year of Release: 2007
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: symphony on 2007-08-20

Media

The Graduate's Anhedonia is a masterpiece of pop-punk album composing. Producers and record labels alike: if you want to sell records and make money, follow in the footsteps of Icon Mes and The Graduate. "How do you figure, Sean?" Let me explain the art of a pop-punk album in a nutshell: look at your fellow pop-punk bands, mimic their sound, paraphrase their lyrics, record an album, and then release said album.  That is how you make a masterpiece of pop-punk. Which is to say that pop-punk albums lack three things: originality, talent, and originality (I said originality twice because 1) this is my review and 2) it's that damn important.) and that means the all pop-punk masterpieces are bland, repetitive, and downright lacking in innovation.

The only way to improve on a perfect pop-punk album (if you agree with my theory that all pop-punk albums are already perfect) is to add a dash--or four--of originality. Something new to the table that'll actually set your record apart from the rest of the genre, so that you'll be five foot three inches in a five foot tall crowd; you have just enough height to be spotted by virtually everybody in the attendance (what you are attending is beyond me, I don't think my metaphors out beyond what I need them for.).

This brings me back to Anhedonia. What does it have that other pop-punk albums don't have? It has some amazingly technical keyboard work ("Better Company"), but so every Motion City Soundtrack album. However, songs like "Sit & Sink" take advantage of a synthesizer like MCS will never manage. MCS will never evolve and never mature from their constant state of poppy keyboards. The Graduate manages to twist them to what they need--not sticking to the same dolcet tones over the span of the album. Thank God! Something The Graduate does that no other pop-punk band does is actually put some effort into their guitars and manage to release some very engaging rhythms ("Anhedonia").

Some people go as far to say that this release is the "Best Album of 2007" (not true, Jason Tate, not true). Don't get me wrong, this is a good album. But underneath all the aspects that are wholy The Graduate lies the basic attributes of any other pop-punk band that anyone ever entering into the genre can ever mask.

User Reviews and Comments

on 2008-08-09 X_NaStY Said:

I dig a few songs off this album. I like the title track the best though.
Not Rated

Review:

on 2007-08-20 Symphony Said:

I enjoyed it. I even respect it. It doesn't deliver like all the hype did.
Not Rated

Review:

on 2007-08-20 hstisgod Said:

Not Rated

Review:

on 2007-08-20 hstisgod Said:

Not Rated