Gifts and Curses

[inspectionstare]

what are you panic attacks about?? i know i also get them whenever i try to comprehend eternity, and crazy stuff like that. i feel like i'm going crazy sometimes. i just try to avoid thinking to deep, cause it leads to nothing good, for me atleast.

Regards, Sam

[GreatScott]

finally heard the whole song today, what a freakin' rip. even people who barely know i12 were able to figure out the bite.

thanks pete.

[Jason]

Sorry to hear that Matt. Those attacks can be a bitch. Rawson used to get them all the time, but now takes meds that have really helped her out. Actually, Will was talking about the 60 G's the other night that they made. Must be nice. See ya around.

[MrDave]

I'm having real difficulty identifying the similarity between this song and any Inspection 12 It has a piano part...but i'm pretty sure Inspection 12 weren't the first band to ever do that so it can't be that...I just got to the guitar solo...oh no, other bands do that too.

Seriously, if it sounds like Inspection 12 because its a pop punk song then, sure you have a point. But to me this is the sort of big, powerful slow pop song that i've come to know from Yellowcard, certainly not Inspection 12.

Honestly i don't understand this vendetta against Yellowcard and Pete Sure, maybe your favourite band has to go on hold because of it but do you have to make up crap that clearly isn't true to support your weak argument?

Anyway, in case anyone cares, i think this song is amazing.

[dude]

MrDave

There's no vendetta. I like yellowcard and liked the song. When I heard it, I actually thought, "at least yellowcard will be making i12-like songs even if i12 breaks up".

It sounds a lot like i12 in its song writing. Its not a simple slow pop rock song like you are saying. The song writing is really quite complex...especially during the bridge. Yellowcard has never done anything that complex as long as I can remember. I think dan and pete were the first guys I can remember to really bring classical influenced sound into the hyper active pop punk genre. I think yellowcard is now taking that same idea and running with it. they are getting better at it, but in part because Pete is there.

Even the vocals on Gifts and Curses sound less pop punk whiney and more 'dan mclintock' distinct. Ryan didn't sing like that on earlier tracks. If all you hear when you hear the Gifts and Curses (or any i12 song from the In Recovery and Get Rad) is just another pop punk song, then you don't know a whole lot about music.

[inspectionstare]

there is absolutly no vendetta with me either. i think yellowcard is a bad ass band. gifts and curses is a totally rad song, but, it is pretty obvious that pete wrote it. it sounds nothing like any previous yellowcard song that i can recall at least. i am glad, for sure, that yellowcard is expanding their sound, that is awesome. but it is quite obvious that gifts and curses wouldn't exist if it weren't for pete rejoining the band.

[GreatScott]

I'd say listen to Elegy, I'm fine I can drive, and Labels are for cans. If you can't hear it, then you're not listening.

The opening guitar chunk is blatant dan style; listen to craig's bro lost at sea and get rad to figure that.

Like dave pointed out, pay attention to the arrangement, it's pretty similar to Again, but not as crafty. for instance the change into "she is the one" it's not the verse, kinda alternate verse, then a prechorus.

the breakdown is pretty i12, listen to labels are for cans, it tries to emulate that energy, but of course its much more bland, they draw it out too long, and the bass is empty, nothing going on. and the dynamic change to the electric part is pretty weak. and of course the piano plays on during the electric part, just like the new version of labels are for cans.

Even the drumming is stolen from tim. I mean i hate to say it since i think the worst part of get rad is the drumming, but shit LP stole some of the off beat timing tim uses. so big ups to you tim.

hell the last chord of the song is on piano, tell me that's not inspection 12!

anyways, now you guys know why pete's in the band; its so now yc can legitamately sound like i12 and have a good reason. I'm sure if they heard us saying its a rip of i12, ryan would say, "no shit, pete's in the band" And that's why they kicked alex out.

i remember in a yellowcard interview it was commented that they sounded like craig's brother. Sean said, well, duh, ryan was in craig's brother.

Dan needs to step it up.

[InRecoveryARFWD]

"The opening guitar chunk is blatant dan style; listen to craig's bro lost at sea and get rad to figure that"

Actually, it sounds like the band Staring Back. Almost identical, in fact.

[GreatScott]

listen to their version of violins that's on the bush comp. you can't say the door slam at the end doesn't remind you of a certain attempted door slam on get rad.

the cover also reminds me of i12's FOD cover; the piano and guitar chunking. but overall, the violins cover is pretty weak. i rather enjoy joey cape's acoustic version most.

[DaveWonders]

It took me a while to warm up to Get Rad, and yeah a lil of it was the speed or lack there of. I was quick to blame Tim, but listening to it now I'm finding tons of things I love that he does. No crazy foot work that usually gives me a boner, but the hand work with the hi hats , snare, and toms is so tight...I'm lovin' it.

And Ben, nice call with Staring Back. The first chord hits are their signature sound, and then the lead part right after thats going back and forth sounds like a dumbed down SB ripoff too. Is that first chord a 7th? If it is then it's totally a ripoff of SB. I'm too lazy to pick up my guitar and find out. I have no interest in learning how to play this song.

And something I think I said a long time ago on the old board when Pete joined them the first time was that I wished Pete played guitar and Ryan switched to bass. Anyone remember when he played bass in I12 for a few shows before James got back to town and Dan played 2nd guitar? Obviously he can play bass, and not much of their stuff is hard on bass. But Ryan is not such a good guitarist, and he's especially sloppy live. Just imagine Pete wailing for YC and then maybe Ryan would sound better vocally if he didn't have to focus on guitar as much. Ben's okay on guitar, but he never impresses me, again especially live. The Leno performance comes to mind. Ya know that clean solo part he plays over the bridge before the last chorus? It makes me wanna puke the way it sounds on that show. Guitars out of tune or something. Or maybe Ben shouldnt run around like an idiot if he can't play the solo well.

[GreatScott]

DaveWonders said:

It took me a while to warm up to Get Rad, and yeah a lil of it was the speed or lack there of. I was quick to blame Tim, but listening to it now I'm finding tons of things I love that he does. No crazy foot work that usually gives me a boner, but the hand work with the hi hats , snare, and toms is so tight...I'm lovin' it.

that's exactly how i felt when i first heard it. I mean i still get bothered by the lack of bass drum on the faster parts, but he definitely works the hihats and toms. Like i said, sounds like LP borrowed some ideas from Tim, so big ups to Tim.

I'll have to check staring back out. They played with i12 back in ca in santa cruz, but i was bored to tears and left. any songs i should listen to so i can understand what you're talking about?

I think if Ben doesn't work on his stage performance we might just see dan playing guitar. then it's be sweet if pete and ryan switched up. then shit, you'd have a killer lineup. LP is pretty similar to Shad, so shit, that would be rad, except for having ryan in the band.

[MrDave]

Seriously ladies and gents, thanks for assuming i don't know much about music but i'd like to think i know as much as the average 19 year old classically trained musician, giving me a great starting point from which to evaluate the similarities and differences between two different bands.

There are certain things that instantly get me hooked on Inspection 12 songs. The awesome and often pretty complex guitar work, the two guitars harmonising and intertwining to make something musically exciting and different to the usual 4 chord pop rock of a band such as Yellowcard. Then there's the vocal harmonies of course. I don't hear any vocal with more than a single, simplistic raised third harmony on Gifts and Curses. Without some sort of interesting vocal arrangement i couldn't possibly draw a comparison with Inspection 12. The drumming here bares no relation to anything i have heard Tim play..ever What drummer doesn't trash his cymbals during a big slow chorus? I don't think anyone took much time saying "hey lets play the drums like Tim does on choruses. You know, slow and loud." because thats like any band. And if you want to compare the hip hop/reggae/whatever bit in the verses to Tim's style of play then i think you'd find a great deal of difference. On all of Get Rad there wasn't any song with a drum beat as different or unconventional as that. Now don't get me wrong, i think Tim is awesome and I would love to be half the drummer he is, but i don't think you can compare his style of play with (bollocks to that, i'm not going to try and spell his name. The one with the dread locks ) I'm lost as to what off beat timings have been stolen from Tim but there's nothing in this song i haven't heard before by a hundred other bands so i'm guessing Tim didn't invent it himself either.

Finally, the instrumental section seems to be what draws most people to an Inspection 12 comparison, right? I can understand to an extent that this section could fit in to an Inspection 12 song. However the execution would be much different and i'm certain I12 would rely less on the impressive, big sounding instruments and do something with guitar and vocal harmony to intensify the arrangement.

Err...i don't know. I guess I just honestly can't see the similarity and you guys are all losers.

No you aren't. Sorry.

But I could hear this song fitting so much easier on to Ocean Avenue than Get Rad.

[InRecoveryARFWD]

I agree with every single word you just said.

[inspectionstare]

I like how you just contradicted yourself. earlier you said that you thought the song was "amazing." now all of a sudden it's not up to par, what's the deal? is the song amazing or not? i think you're trying to take the role of the person who disagrees. but whatever.

anyways, it would be soooo awsome if dan were in that band, but realistically i always thought the best solution to YC's line-up problems would have been to trow pete on guitar, keep alex on bass, and have ryan sing his little lungs out. why does ryan have to play guitar??? i agree, he is not impressive at all.

but oh well,,,,,

[DaveWonders]

To whoever asked about Staring Back... Their last album "On" is the best record ever....of anything.....all time.....seriously. The song YC ripped is the first song called Version 2.0 It's the same intro. Oh well. Normally I'd just forget it cuz it happens all the time...but they're old label mates so ya know, I know that they know they've heard the song. Let's just hope SB finds a new singer as good as Matt and keeps rocking. Anyone see them at Warped?