Reviews: Rydell - Always Remember Everything
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Alt-UK.com (http://www.alt-uk.com)
This is a collection of earlier Rydell stuff and you can hear the band as they were before the release of the album. There are 14 tracks here of emotional Punk Rock. The band on this CD still sound very Hot Water Music but on this CD they sound much more emotional and there are no more aggressive hardcore tracks like on the album. This is a good CD to chill out to as it is extremely mellow and so emotional that at times on this CD you want to cry but you just cant because at the same time it is so strong that it is unbelievable. You hear the band as they progress through and become better musicians and then you see how they arrived at the sort of style that they have now. It is quite amazing to see how much they have improved since they started out and a band that started off great have become legendary! If you look at the discography for this band then you can see that it is extremely impressive so this is not just a change that has happened over night, the sound of the band has been refined over a series of years and CDs. All of these songs are awesome in their own right and I feel that they have really managed to create their own unique style in the time that they have been around. Yes, it may draw many different influences but in taking these influences they have put them all together and added their own secret ingredient to spice it up a bit and they have emerged far greater for it and have the most original and unique take on Emo that I have ever heard in my life. I think that they are definitely the best in the UK at what they do and they deserve to be a famous band as by the number of CDs and shows that they have done you can tell that they are not a lazy band and what they have achieved so far has been through sheer determination and hard work. Look out for this band in the future and look out for their next album as I am sure that it will be a cracker with many nice little twists to take you by surprise! Check out their site at http://www.rydell.co.uk
Collective (Tom Sloan)
Irony - I got this through for review just the week after I picked up Rydell's debut "per ardua ad astra", so I was feeling pretty won over by this band already by the time I gave this a spin. And fortunately this is more of the same feel-good, gruff vocalled indie-rock, collecting together tracks from all the bands pre-"...ad astra" releases. I love this band, and whilst it may sound very simple, I find myself wanting to listen to their music all the time and as a result the new cd hasn't been far from the nearest pile for the last couple of weeks. Maybe it's the fact this is so accessible, yet not in a trite and banal way, - sometimes the guitars give me fleeting reminders of the poppier moments of the get up kids, the promise ring, and chamberlain, whilst somehow remaining fresh-sounding and original. The conclusion I"ve come to, is that Rydell, for all their 90's indie-rock/pop sensibilities, just sound inescapably English in their songs: there's something about the lyrics, the non-American accents, and just the sound of the songs that ultimately endears enormously to them. This cd is pretty worthwhile if you enjoyed "...ad astra", and don't have any of the other tracks on other releases. Opener 'try 17" is catchy as anything, with a type of rhetorical style to the lyrics, the kind of which I can't help but smile when hearing. The next few tracks are equally as fun and infectious with those familiar vocals, and super-melodic guitar lines. "Home" then appears twice on the record, meaning I now own 3 versions of it...not that I mind all that much, the first version on here is by far my favourite, with a quieter, twinkly-er verse, still with that big chorus but slightly more restrained this time. "Across three parks" has to be up there as one of Rydells" best songs. The guitar line is a great hook, the vocals come in, then the band crashes in and it hit's the "feel good" level instantly. Fun. Some tracks on here don't quite match those on the album proper... the 2 unreleased songs only hinting at Rydell's best song-writing... but "always remember everything" is a quality package all the same. The entire acoustic 7" is included, and just reiterates the talent on show really, - I"m quite amazed that "Home" and "Post College Rock" work so well. I"d love to hear more of that acoustic guitar in their songs in the future because it really does sound quite unique with the raw sounding vocals. So, to summarise, a cd that works perfectly in that it's more Rydell and saves tracking down various old vinyl and comps. I realised the other day that I"ve been buying much of my indie-rock over the last two years from these guys distro, and for what it's worth, they seem like really great and friendly guys as well. Looking forward to the new album.
Running on Empty (Jon)
This is meant to be some kind of bridge between their last album and their forthcoming one and its basically a collection of unreleased, rare and compilation / 7" appearances all gathered together onto one shiny 5" disc. And very good it is too: being, as I am someone who only owns a few Rydell things I wasn't too sure how relevant or interesting this would be to me, but its been well compiled, and I am enjoying it purely as an album of its own merit. Of course if I were someone who owned several of these releases already it would be different, but hey. no real stand out tracks for me but it was cool to see an acoustic and original version of home on there: I'm a real sucker for this "alternative version" thing! As with so many bands these days the clincher for whether you like this band or not will be the singers voice: its powerful and rough without shouting, but wears a bit thin after a while. I like it though and it certainly ads to their emo tag. 7/10
XforTheKidsx
Rydell are one of oldest emo core bands of England. I remember them on a gig with the totally unknown Hot Water Music back in 1998 in the center of Italy, and after many releases they proves an high grade of maturity. Complex and well play emo rock in the vein of Sensefield with acoustic parts. Great stuff and another strike from Ignition Records.
UK Base (http://www.ukbase.org.uk)
This is a collection of tracks from 7's (including their split with Hot Water Music), unreleased and acoustic numbers. 14 in all, the lot of them good tracks. Rydell are similar to early Hot Water Music, but not as aggressive and with a lighter kind of folky edge to their music, or kind of a softer version of HMW's side project 'Unitas'. The vocals are nice and gravely and the songs are well structured and recorded. I would have liked to see on the inlay a description of where each of the tracks came from and when the were recorded so you can judge the growth in the band over the years before their full length came out, but the inlay is pretty substantial with lyrics and a discography with cover images. If your a fan of this style of mid paced punk with a emo rock edge and a folk influence then check this out, it's calming but full of strength. Look out for their full length of new material later in the year.
The Communion (http://www.thecommunion.co.uk)
As a collection of "Rydell compilation tracks, demos, unreleased songs etc etc", Always Remember Everything walks the fine line between some wonderfully raw emotional rock music and some uninteresting displays of weaker, half-arsed pop emo Hot Water Music attempts. It's what comes with throwing songs together that weren't meant to be unified on an album, but in a way they do pull it off. Opener 'try 17" has the pleasantly catchy riffage and all the boy-meeting-girl wise story telling going on of bands such as The Get Up Kids, with a sound that is more American easy listening emo than, well, what Tunbridge Wells would normally inspire musically. But with 14 songs and the album only barely approaching the forty minute mark, it's effortless to listen to music, as song after song seem to pass you by and all too suddenly, before anything has really touched you, it's over. With a fair few releases under their belts and having reached the stage where they can release a "collection" album (a stage which too few British bands would even hint at these days), some tracks do stand out and pick up from the monotony, an indication that yes they do have the ability to write a heartfelt tune as well as any Vagrant band and can pull it off with prowess too. "Home" presents probably the best culmination and execution of what Rydell are capable of, using the simplicity and layering of dual vocals over uncomplicated yet naturally powerful guitars. Having "remained true" in many ways to the punk rock DIY ethic, having released 7"'s and splits with the likes of Hot Water Music and Pale, there is a lot pointing at their plausibility that raise them in many ways from other UK bands bringing emo rock to the masses, plus the fact they"ve been doing it a hell of a lot longer. But the energy and slight connection that is felt at the beginning of the album begin to fade pretty early and by "Red Light Runner" the feeling that I"ve heard this song 4 tracks ago begins which can't be good. For fans of Jimmy Eat World and Kids Near Water, this is British 5 piece are making some very pretty guitar emo tunes which may waver towards the end. But this is no definitive collection of Rydell's history, and saying that Rydell are no groundbreaking or especially "inventive with their emo" group. Not bad, just not great. 5.5/10
Kerozene
Its always nice to hear about RYdell. FOr those unlucky who do not have the wonderful "per ardua ad astra", rydell is 'something" like the europeean hot water music. A broken voice, nice melodies as the get up kids in their begginning (without the pop side), songs that know when to punch you in. This new production shows the bands evolution since its beggining. Aside from some unpersuasive songs you can easily get into others as "red light runner or 'star break free" much closer to what rydell is now. A nice record without any doubt.
