Album Review: Rise Against- Endgame (2011)

Complacency in today's music industry has become far too common, with far too many perfect examples: Lady GaGa's "Born this Way" is a Madonna rip-off; You can't listen to a Ke$ha song and tell whether it was on Animal or Cannibal; And then there's the whole over-saturated heap of junk that Nickelback loosely call a "career." The point is, when success is achieved, its really, really easy to get comfortable with where you are. Rise Against may have fallen victim to that horrendous disease, as Appeal to Reason was viewed by fans to be their least-inspired work. Sure, songs like "Savior" and "Long Forgotten Sons" were standouts that entered the band's already bolstered plethora of quality tracks, but the key criticism of Appeal was that the band was trying too hard to make a statement against the world. Now, enter Endgame: the return to form everyone should have seen coming.


Endgame begins with lead single "Architects," but don't for a second think it doesn't pack a solid punch to the gut: during the bridge, vocalist Tim McIlrath seems to call out former co-punks Against Me!, who have undoubtedly faded into the general rock genre, by shouting the line "Don't you remember when you were young, and you wanted to set the world on fire?," which is a direct reference to the punk-abondoning AM! song "I was a Teenage Anarchist." As if to answer his own question to shove it in Tom Gabel and Co.'s face, McIlrath then croons "Because I still am, and I still do." That feeling of staying young and remembering to stick to what you stand for lines Endgame, and proves to be the album fans hoped Appeal to Reason would be. Sure, it makes a statement, but does it still pack that punch and have the heart that has become synonymous with Rise Against?

Fortunately, the answer to that is yes one hundred-one times out of a hundred. Tracks like "Help is on the Way," "Broken Mirrors," and "This is Letting Go" all feature the signature fast-paced style we've grown accustomed to from he band. "Help is on the Way" compliments "Architects" as a perfect one-two punch to kick-start the album, and the energy is unrelenting, as this time, McIlrath has a whole lot to say. Where Appeal to Reason saw McIlrath taking his social commentary to the governmental field, his approach on Endgame is farther-reaching, which pushes the album into the upper echelon of punk records that have been released in the last decade. "Survivor Guilt" brings the wars fought by the US under scrutiny, while "Midnight Hands" finds McIlrath finding an effective way to call out the oppressive governments, which would hold up against the strongest Appeal to Reason tracks as a powerful and thought-provoking track.

Where Endgame truly peaks, however, is on "Make it Stop (September's Children)." Emotional and chilling, the song starts off with and is constantly backed by a children's choir, and serves as Endgame's most unrelenting song, and one of the most important songs the band has written, bar none. Don't let the opening guitar riff that sounds reminiscent of Green Day's "Boulevard of Broken Dreams"  let you think that the song is just another single: the song moves quickly into a statement about the current tumultuous circumstances of the homosexual community in America, and McIlrath's urging to "make it stop." Where the song begins to finally hit home is in the bridge, where McIlrath reads off the names of teenagers who committed suicide because of the ridicule they faced because of their sexuality, while the children's choir sends chills down the listener's spine.

While it may be even more socially conscious than its predecessor, which would make the album appear to be only relevant for the time its been written in, there is a feeling of universality throughout Endgame that will ensure its endurance as the years go by, and allowing it to stand up to the already storied discography Rise Against has put forth thus far. Fans of all types will get something to love from the album: McIlrath's powerful screams resurface on "Help is on the Way" and "Midnight Hands," while "Architects" and "This is Letting Go" are ready to be screamed by the thousands of fans the band has rightfully accumulated. Make no mistake about it: this is a dense, heavy album. Endgame is an emotionally jarring record, and listeners from all walks in life will walk away from their respective music listening methods feeling something they may not have expected.

Bottom Line: Endgame will be remembered as one of the best, most important punk rock albums in the last 5-10 years, and if you've ever liked Rise Against at any point in their career, this could very well be your favorite album this year.