REVIEW: Streetlight Manifesto – 99 Songs Of Revolution (Volume 1)

Alright, I said I would review this. So, you know, here it is.

Streetlight Manifesto is a great band. I have seen them live a bunch of times, and they always brought their A game. Shit, I remember them doing a Mephiskapheles cover once. But, man, they are like the fucking Chicago Cubs of third wave ska. In that, I mean, they have a dedicated fanbase, even though they can not seem to deliver.

To run with that metaphor, Everything Goes Numb was great. It is, to Streetlight fans, like the 1908 World Series is to Cubs fans. It was a shining achievement. That record came out in 2003. Not counting the rerecording of Keasby Nights in 2006, their next proper full length did not come out until 2007. And, after a four year gap between it and Everything Goes Numb, Somewhere In The Between had an underwhelming ten tracks. So, If Everything Goes Numb was like the 1908 Cubs, Somewhere In The Between is like the 2003 Cubs. As little as five games away from the World Series, but could not fucking get there.

Alright, all shitty metaphors aside, this record kind of sucks. Musically, it sounds pretty good. This is a band of skilled musicians. They are, if nothing, consistent when it comes to music. However, it is dragged down by being a fucking record full of cover songs. They cover material from punk bands like the Dead Milkmen, Bad Religion, and NOFX. They cover some pop and rock stuff from Paul Simon and The Cyrkle. And, they do a pretty on the nose cover of “Hell” by Squirrel Nut Zippers. Then, to make it even worse, they did a version of a fucking Bandits Of The Acoustic Revolution song. Yes, I know that is Tomas’ other band. And, yes, I know that Everything Goes Numb also had a BOTAR cover. But, this time it just seems gratuitous.

Anyway, their cover of “Linoleum” is basically a slowed down, reggae-ish song. Does it stand up to the original? Well, no. That song was meant to be a fast song. That song needs Fat Mike’s voice. The same thing goes for “Skyscraper.” Except switch Fat Mike to Greg Graffin and NOFX to Bad Religion. Otherwise, the covers are pretty much ehhh. They sound exactly like what you think Streetlight covering those songs would sound like.

The only song on here I am even remotely stoked on is the cover of the Dead Milkmen classic “Punk Rock Girl.” That song is a fun song, so even being surrounded by schlock, it will always stand out. But, that is more of a statement on the song versus the band. The Paul Simon cover of “Me And Julio Down By The School Yard” is pretty good too, I guess.

Probably the most talked about cover on this whole album is a cover of “At Such Great Heights.” When I first heard it, I was excited. I mean, I really like The Postal Service, and I like Streetlight. This should have been great. The synth parts done by the horn section DID sound pretty rad. But, just making the song another generic third wave ska song kind of sucks. Plus, as that one  guy on Punknews says, the band Tip The Van was covering this song for a long time. Including on the tour where they opened for Streetlight. So, there is that implied drama that I can not even be bothered to mention beyond that.

All in all, this album was disappointing. It was basically a bunch of songs made to sound like any other Streetlight song. Was anyone really clamoring for a ska version of a Radiohead song? Especially since there is a version of the same song (“Just”) done by The Arrogant Sons Of Bitches readily available at the Quote Unquote Website. 

I am not even going to rate this. Anyone who likes Streetlight probably already bought this. This thing charted at #140 on the Billboard 200. This record will be the new Modified by Save Ferris. By that, I mean, look for it at used CD shops everywhere. The smart money says that is where it will end up.

Buy it here (if you dare)
Information about this album, and the whole 99 song project @ Wikipedia