New Jersey is a rock, emo, and pop-punk music mecca, so it comes as no surprise that rock/pop-punk champs Can’t Swim would hail from the same. They’ve dabbled in a couple of genres on past albums like hardcore and indie before settling into more of the pop-punk vein which fits like a glove for the group. The quartet is gearing up for the release of their fourth album, Thanks But No Thanks (Pure Noise) as it drops the same day as their US-wide tour kick-off supporting Free Throw.
Their most recent upbeat single opens the album and offers a playful nod to Alkaline Trio’s ‘Radio’. Lead singer Chris LoPorto says of the track, “‘Nowhere, Ohio’ is a song I wrote while driving another band’s tour bus for a month. Crazy long overnight drives by myself where your thoughts become your worst enemy. I’ve spent the last decade of my life on tour and constantly in motion, the lyrics are a summary of those feelings. So many nights you don’t know how far you’ll make it on the drive or where you’ll be sleeping, which describes the title ‘Nowhere, Ohio.’”
‘Can You Help Me’ hits home as it discusses the disease of addiction. The song tells the tale of a close friend and isn’t jarred or interrupted by a repeated chorus. While the melody remains the same, the words keep a chronological but pleading narrative of a close friend’s battle and subsequent and unfortunate demise.
The third track could be dubbed a musician’s anthem. ‘Me vs Me vs All of Y’all’ discusses regrets of not being home and thus putting pressure and strain on family, relationships, and friendships. It also highlights being one’s own worst critic and too closely critiquing one’s work to that of an industry idol or influence. The track is bouncy, albeit a touch self-deprecating.
‘Met U The Day The World Ended’ is a sweet, endearing song that he wholesomely devotes to his love. “It’s maybe, I think, Can’t Swim’s first love song? Usually, it’s mostly break-up songs and sadness,” LoPorto chuckled, “but this one actually has a happy ending.”
‘Yer Paradox, I’m Paradigm’ opens with a muffled music audio snippet and LoPorto doesn’t hesitate with the lyrics ‘Nowadays it kinda seems/ That anyone could get away/ With murder/ Oh, with murder’. The song speaks to the frustration that society struggles to find a common perspective and thought process, and how everyone always seems to be at odds.
The first single from the record is arguably the most morose. ‘I Heard They Found You Face Down In Your Living Room’ sounds like a random 2000’s emo song title that doesn’t reflect the content, but it’s sadly quite literal. In fact, the track opens with the very words and reveals the feelings one has after a friend passes; what to do, to carry on, to end it, too? Being involved with death, whether directly or on the periphery, is always a difficult thing to initially process, but the grief never gets erased, just rearranged. “I think it was the very, very first time I was performing a song and I actually started to cry,” LoPorto admitted. “It was the second or third time we played it and I was like, this is really heavy … It came back that night.”
There can’t be a quintessential punk or pop-punk album without some influence of politics. A rallying chant can be found in ‘ELIMINATE’; a strength-in-numbers call to arms against gun violence. It shares the frustration felt in experiencing what feels like a firearm catastrophe Groundhog Day; tragedy strikes, people cry out for change, but still, nothing changes.
Another staple to a punk or pop-punk album is singing about where you grew up, for better or for worse. ‘I Never Paid A Toll On the Garden State Parkway’ is an homage (and a fact, according to LoPonto) to his growing up in New Jersey, starting a band with lavish high hopes when it’s actually a lot tougher than it seems, and understanding what true success looks and feels like.
Cleverly named ‘Even My Anger Has Issues’ discusses friction and toxicity between family members, and how hard it can be to draw boundaries with them. While the lyrics are brutal (“If I had my way/ I’d fucking tear you apart/ My anger has issues/ And you’re so far away/ Shoulda known from the start/ What goes around comes back around”) LoPonto confessed, “I don’t think it’s really mentioned in the song, but I’ve definitely come to peace with it and distanced myself- the proper amount of distance- and I feel way better about it now as an adult but it was definitely very challenging throughout my life.”
The album closes with the title track, ‘Thnx But No Thnx’. It’s slow and reminiscent but to the point. Reflective of the previous track, it shares the toughness involved with severing ties and not coming back, truly “thanks… but no thanks.”
Buy the album here:
7 / 10
JESSIE FRARY