The Lawrence Arms
Metropole
Epitaph Records
10/10
How three dudes from Chicago can make album after album of punk anthems is beyond me. How they do that while each being in approximately 73 other bands makes it even more surreal With Metropole, The Lawrence Arms trot out their best work yet, throwing down 12 tracks of the Midwestern beer belly despair rock. Drunk Tweets finds the trio whipping out their punk-as-fuck background with a whole lotta f-bombs, while Seventeener (17th and 37th) finds Brenden Kelly contemplating growing up.
The balance of vocals between Chris McCaughan and Brenden Kelly should show screaming metal bullshit bands that you can have two vocalists without one of them just abusing their vocal chords over mommy-issue lyrics. Neil Hennesy’s drumming is a shining beacon of… you know what, just go get the damned thing. It’s fucking rad.