Same Old Story – A Great Disgrace

Sweden’s Same Old Story come with a distinct youthfulness as part of their make-up. It’s there in their papery, colourful artwork, and it’s there in their music too.

Keening yells of raw emotion propel this fiery, remarkably consistent batch of pop-punk tracks – everything feels speedy; guitar, bass and drums all blending into one unified force.

It’s a battering ram of sound, a sonic assault that comes reinforced with a strong sense of the band knowing exactly what kind of album they want to make.

In 2009 the band released their taster EP Waste Of Time, and combined with their name itself – Same Old Story – there is a constant notion of urgency in everything they do.

The intention is clear, a straight-out fight against any kind of stagnation, a malaise so often present in debut rock albums. And thankfully, stagnation is something this record never falls prey to.

Early highlights Another Reason and Don’t Blame The Penguins see the band at their most melodic, riding high on powerful guitar solos – the latter even finds time to launch into a bizarre interlude of circus music.

It’s here we see the album’s undercurrent of dark humour, bringing a real punchy personality to the tracks. Daily Crime benefits in this respect too, whilst also blending in a muscular bassline reminiscent of the Silversun Pickups.

If there’s a ‘best track’ though, it’s to be found in Reality. Standing proud in the album’s mid-point, it is the anchor to which the rest of the record can steady itself from.

Sound-wise, the album shares much of its DNA with another incredibly accomplished debut from this year – Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows’ self-titled effort, released back in February. Both records feel alive with the enthusiasm of the respective bands’ members, the album functioning as a natural extension to their own lives.

A speedy adrenaline shot of cool, A Great Disgrace leaves you breathless in its wake; a fitting manifesto for a band plainly brimming with ambition.

http://www.totallyvivid.com/2011/07/same-old-story-great-

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“The great disgrace” is the debut album of these 4 punkettoni Made in Sweden. They are called Same Old Story but from the first listen you understand well enough that it will not be the same old story … there is something different between a note and the other … there is something about the ’90s, base affects almost all the tracks but manages to mix the sound of today!

The influence of bands like Millencolin and Rise Against is not hidden at all, indeed it is already clear from “Erik fell in love” and “Another reason”. And ‘punk but accompanied by a voice a little’ different from the usual (with a beautiful natural vibrato), not tired or nervous, good melodies, not at all trivial, and songs like “Study your bible belt” and “Do not Blame the Penguins “that capture you immediately! “We Came To Be …” is a piece vocals and guitar for almost 2 minutes in an album that seems stuck rather badly and I say: we’re just fine!

It’s a moment to rest your ears and brain and then … it is well sung (and is not something so obvious in punk-rock!) A note on the penultimate track, “David Koresh”: the song “sbatacchiona” of Same old story speaks of the religious American David Koresh, who was killed in a fire along with members of his sect in Texas after 51 days of siege by the FBI. It ends with a flourish with “Hate” (also resent some echoes of Papa Roach. .. possible!?).

3.5 out of 5

http://www.ondalternativa.it/modules.php?name=Reviews&rop

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Having recently embarked on a UK tour Same old Story are a band yet to break out fully into the UK rock scene.

However their debut album ‘A great disgrace’ has great prospects for the Swedish band and should be a definite listen for keen punk-rock fans.

Each song is distinctive from the next, creating a diverse blend of catchy pop choruses and fast paced melodic punk, meaning this band wouldn’t be out of place alongside punk rock bands such as Rise Against, or the more pop based punk bands at the opposite end of the spectrum.

The fast paced hardcore guitar rhythms are the main foundation throughout the album, with the overlay of punchy chorus’ which both leaves the band open to a variety of fans whether it be burly tattooed men or teenage girls with a tendency for All Time Low.

This style of rock also gives them a more radio friendly sound without compromising the main punk-rock routes.
Singer, Mattias has a voice that matches both the heavier tracks such as ‘Don’t blame the penguins’ and ‘Hate’ but also the timid, acoustic track ‘We came to be’. Unfortunately the song loses some potential due to its shortness being only 1 minute 49, and has the ability to be a great track if only it were more developed.

Never the less it is a welcomed break from the high velocity tone of the album and highlights again the diversity of this band.

Overall this is a great album with clear direction and a distinctive style from a band that are wrongly overlooked in the punk rock scene. A definite band to watch out for in the future.

Song to download: Identical Denies

4/5 Top Hats

http://www.tophatmagazine.com/Reviews/Same-Old-Story-A-Gr

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