The Bouncing Souls walk the plank on “Ghosts on the Boardwalk”
TrendRobot Album Rating: 5/10
Maintaining a band for 20 years is more than impressive. Making quality punk rock for 20-years is beyond comprehension. In a time when all of the flag-bearers of our teenage angst have long-since retired, retracted, or are fading into the limelight, The Bouncing Souls continued to make fast, rebellious, catchy anthems that always made you feel like there was someone in your corner. Unfortunately though, at some point, everyone has to grow up at least a little bit and it almost seems that one their 20th anniversary, The Bouncing Souls are the ghosts walking the boardwalk and fading into the horizon.
I’m not going to lie . . . I’m a lifelong Bouncing Souls fan. I have a full collection of LPs, 7”s, t-shirts and random buttons strewn across my desk that can chronologically recount my youth at Bouncing Souls shows. Spanning from their self-titled release all the way through The Gold Album, I was always satisfied with what the Souls could produce. Breakneck tempos, enough rasp and grit to remain punk, with just the right sprinkling of studio-flair every album had its own, unique twinge. Break-up songs were tongue-in-cheek, political songs were anthems of rebellion, and drinking songs kept the suds flowing. The Bouncing Souls were, and always will be, a timeless tradition for myself and my friends and there have been many memories involving nearly every record. The Souls showed me, at a young age, that there was more than just the crap they played on the radio. The Souls showed me that there was more to music than guitar solos or visual effects . . . there was unity and there was solidarity.
However, as perhaps has been the case with bands like Strung Out, Bigwig, Alkaline Trio and other idols of our revolution, the Souls are at a loss for material. On the recently released Ghosts on the Boardwalk, the anthems are there, but the sing-alongs are lacking something behind them. There are more than enough “whoaaaas” and “oi oi oi” to go around, but it all sits in very little substance. Take for instance a track like “Airport Security” . . . perhaps I’m just let down by the fact that there’s so much that COULD be behind a track titled “Airport Security”, and instead it is turned into the most adolescent of love songs. “Ghosts on the Boardwalk” and “Boogie Woogie Downtown” follow suit accordingly with dreamy-eyed prose over girls and growing up. Remind yourself for a moment that The Bouncing Souls are now well into their 30s and have already done the love song formula on every one of their past albums. The title “Ghosts on the Boardwalk” seems an apt observation for skate/punk these days.
The only bright spot of the album is the opener which heralded so much hope for the return of a great band to prominence. “Gasoline” opens the collection with a profane commentary on modern insecurities and media distractions. This is the kind of fire that I’m used to hearing from The Bouncing Souls. They may be aging, but there’s still a spark lurking somewhere behind Greg Attonito’s vocal chords and “Gasoline” and “Never Say Die” may be the very last of it. What the band has always done best is inspire a “happy riot” of sorts in their tight-knit community of fans and there’s enough of that sort to go around here but, unfortunately, on Ghosts on the Boardwalk, simply having an anthemic chorus isn’t enough. In fact, there’s a song actually named, “We All Sing Along” in the latter parts of the album (I bet you can guess what the catchy chorus is).
All things considered, Ghosts on the Boardwalk isn’t horrible. It definitely isn’t the worst album I’ve heard in recent months and I’ll definitely keep it around in my library. I just expected something more from a band that I’ve all but worshiped over the past 15 years. The very ideals behind the Bouncing Souls will never fade and albums like Maniacal Laughter and Anchors Aweigh will always live on as picture frames to fond memories over the years. Those old albums still seem fresh and innovative to me in a strange sense and will always keep their luster. At some point though, I always knew I’d outgrow the power chords and catchy anthems. Now though, I know that it wasn’t the fact that they were easy to chant . . . the words and music always meant something. If nothing else, Ghosts on the Boardwalk reminds me that those older albums had substance and always will. Perhaps, for that, if nothing else, it should be rewarded as a great farewell album.
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