Pennsylvania’s masters of melody are back for their third album for Epitaph. If you know The Menzingers, this record is not a departure from where they were heading with their last record, Rented World, and if you’re new to them, embrace the catchiness, great lyrics, and insightfulness of After The Party.
The bands’ fifth album overall is pretty close to pop-rock perfection. The production is clean and every instrument shines; dreamy not-overly distorted guitars, golden on-the-note vocals, an in-the-pocket bass, and a nice Punk Rock kick-snare combo. Get ready to get melodies stuck in your head. The “Whoa”’s of ‘Telling Lies’ are going to be addictive and the chorus of ‘Lookers’ will get stuck to the roof of your mouth. ‘Thick as Thieves’ has some great guitar licks and a chorus that gave me goose bumps. The lyrics of ‘Midwestern States’ are a haunting truth of a 30-somethings escaping and dealing with reality. The explosiveness of ‘House on Fire’s’ intro sits in perfect contrast with the following ‘Black Mass’, the mellowest tune on the record. ‘Boy Blue’ could sit on top of the pop charts with the crunchy guitars and the vocal beauty.
Towards the end, some of the melodies seem to be recycled and “borrowed” as the band professed in 2012’s The Impossible Past’s ‘Burn After Writing.’ ‘Bad Catholics’ is super-relatable with a great chorus and nostalgic lyrics and comes in and out with punk rock songwriting minimalism. ‘The Bars’ is a nice change to the last couple of tunes with a change in singers and timing, once again reeking of honesty. The title track, ‘After the Party’ hit me personally with the lyrics “Everybody wants to get famous, but you just want to dance in the basement/You don’t care if anyone is watching, just as long as you stay in motion.” It’s a strong closer, proving that After the Party an excellent listen and a great job by wordsmiths armed with talented songwriting and hooks galore.
The Menzingers definitely shed a little punk rock skin on this record without completely stepping out the element they have evolved into. Prepare to be a re-inspired fan or an avid new listener.
8.5/10
ROB SUSS