|
Punk rock used to be about haggard road warriors. Before all the breakdowns and flat irons, there were busted transmissions and collect calls home. The Flatliners grew up believing in the later and rejecting the former, and after seven years playing together, they're unleashing Cavalcade, their third full-length record and an epic sonic testament to the life they've chosen.
Over the last four years, the Flatliners have spent almost thirty months in vans, dive bars, and concert halls across North America, Europe, and Japan, building up a dedicated following with a sound that mixes the endless fury of '90s skate punk with the nuanced, intelligent songwriting of classic post-punks like the Replacements and Hot Water Music. After releasing the ska-punk tinged Destroy to Create (Union Label Group) in 2005, the band evolved into a harsh melodic machine with 2007's The Great Awake (Fat Wreck Chords), completing their transition into a vital modern punk unit with the Cynics 7" (Fat Wreck Chords) in late 2009.
For Cavalcade, the Flatliners once again teamed up with long-time producer and friend Steve Rizun, recording sporadically between tours in their hometown of Toronto over the course of 2009. Seeking to immortalize the last year of their lives on the road, the end result is easily the band's finest hour; from the thrashy immediacy of "The Calming Collection" to the dub-influenced "He Was A Jazzman", it's the sound of a band hitting their stride musically and finding their voice lyrically, exploring the idea of unity through disconnectedness, of positivity in uncertain times. Driving home the theme are the numerous guest appearances on the record: members of Cancer Bats, A Wilhelm Scream, Dillinger Four, The Snips, Junior Battles, Permanent Bastards, and the Expos all contributed to Cavalcade. Add to that the presence of veteran punk Fat Mike, who flew up to jam with the band in November of 2009, earning an additional production credit and making one of the band's childhood dreams come true.
They've grown up on record and in front of a crowd of like-minded punks. They've made sacrifices to keep the wheels of their van on the road, and Cavalcade is the reward. It really is, as the band says, "a call to arms to all who travel throughout the world on the wings of their creativity."
|
|
 |
Watch Video | "This Respirator"
Album: The Great Awake
Director: Davin Black
|
 |
Warch Video | "Eulogy"
Album: The Great Awake
Director: Colin Minihan
|
 |
Watch Video | "Broken Bones"
Album: Destroy To Create
Director: Jeff Powers
|
 |
Watch Video | "Fred's Got Slacks"
Album: Destroy To Create
Director: Neil Johnston
|
|
|
|
EXCLAIM! MAGAZINE | "A sense of road weariness certainly makes itself known on Cavalcade's 12 songs, and it has allowed, or caused, the band to hone in on the grittiness that has long made them such an appealing act...most will likely agree that Cavalcade is the band's best effort yet." [REVIEW]
PUNKNEWS.ORG | "On their third full-length, Cavalcade, the Flatliners deliver more energetic punk rock in the vein of Smoke or Fire, Dead to Me and Lost City Angels. The vocals are gruff, the tempos are quick and the tunes are all about drinkin' and failin'. The difference lies in the tone, though. Flatliners never wallow in pity, making Cavalcade an awfully hopeful record, even if it deals with topics like economic disparity and familial strife...Cavalcade should make fans want to choose life, make love to the moon and kiss a grizzly right in front of his mama. Or at least drive slightly faster than normal. It's that kind of a feel-good album." [REVIEW]
GROUNDCONTROLMAG.COM | "...The Flatliners have clearly grown both in confidence and conviction on Cavalcade, there will be no doubt in anyone listening that the album proves The Flatliners are destined for great things. All the pieces just lock into place here and it's easy to get excited as you find yourself repeatedly reaching for the repeat button; like Dookie was for Green Day, Punk In Drublic was for NoFX and Siren Song Of The Counter Culture was for Rise Against, so may Cavalcade be the first keystone release for The Flatliners." [REVIEW]
CONNECTIONSMAGAZINE.COM | "In a genre that tends to be overflowing with mediocre mimickers, The Flatliners have proven that they deserve to share the stage with Bad Religion, The Descendents and other legendary punk acts. The Flatliners are not afraid of hard work, whether it's in the studio or on the road, so their journey has just begun!" [REVIEW]
SLUGMAGAZINE.COM | "Every now and then, I hear a record that reminds me just what punk rock is capable of. The amount of creativity and high-level energy that can be pulled out of a band when they are really hitting their stride is astounding. Just such an event has been documented here on the Flatliners' newest, Cavalcade. Gang chorus vocals intermixed with gravel-throated lead singing bring charm and character to each track. Aggressive yet thoughtful progressions run through the entire record. Lyrically, Cavalcade gives a bleak outlook of the world while remaining colorful and entertaining...Just when punk rock couldn't get more stale and boring, a record that preserves a band's youthful antagonistic approach, but also displays a band that has gained a veteran's perspective while touring this country the last three years, comes along and changes the game." [REVIEW]
NIAGRATHISWEEK.COM | "The Flatliners just burn through a set of the 12 phenomenal tracks and take no prisoners as they bombard listeners with sheets of the finest, tightest and most caustic melodic hardcore that the genre could ever hope to produce. Throughout songs including "Carry The Banner," "Bleed," "Filthy Habits" and "Liver Alone," Creswell drops a set of bombs on listeners that mix catharsis with an arresting, caustic tone and the band follows suit with him; laying down incendiary chops that are guaranteed to set pits to boiling live and listeners to throw their fists in the air involuntarily." [REVIEW/INTERVIEW]
TANGIBLESOUNDS.COM | "Cavalcade shows not only that these young guys are the heart and soul of what punk is about, but also shows they aren't afraid to try out new things and shake it up to see where they can go...when the time comes this is one of the bands who will take over for the reigning kings of punk." [REVIEW]
DISTORTEDMAGAZINE.COM | "It's a biting album and exploring the idea of unity through disconnectedness it will undoubtedly galvanise its fans while casting their appeal further and wider." [REVIEW]
SPUTNIKMUSIC.COM | "Two-and-a-half years later comes Cavalcade, a record that builds off what they've done before –but now everything is better. The skate punk doesn't overstay its welcome, the softer parts are more interesting, and as a whole the album covers a lot of ground." [REVIEW]
PASTEPUNK.COM | "Bottom line, Cavalcade is a re-energizing punk record that could only be more aptly named if it was called 40 Minute Burst of Adrenaline. If there is already a master list for the best discs of 2010, Cavalcade ought to be on it, and in single digits." [REVIEW]
DECOYMUSIC.COM | "The Flatliners third full-length Cavalcade might appear to be just another beards-and-beer-in-a-sweaty-basement kind of record, but closer listens reveal one of the most well-executed and energetic punk rock albums in recent history...Opener "The Calming Collection" is a perfect amalgam of what this record is all about: huge frantic guitars, breakneck drumming that still gives you just enough room to breathe, a bass guitar dancing and running in the background, turn-on-dime dynamics, throat-shredding voices singing subtly melodic lines, and gang vocals that beg to be screamed along at the top of everyone’s collective lungs." 4.5/5 [REVIEW]
PUNKROCKTHEORY.COM | 8/10 [REVIEW]
410MEDIA.COM | "Sometimes a bit of dub is added like in "He Was a Jazzman" sometimes things slow down a little more and venture into indie rock territory in songs like "Monumental" which could get airplay on your local alternative station. These changes keep the entire album from getting stale. No matter what style variations they throw into the mix the intensity stays, the shout a long vocals never go away and the will to get up and dance around like a fool never leaves me." [REVIEW]
INSOMNIA RADIO: INDIE MUSIC NETWORK | "...god these guys never disappoint!" Jason Evangelho, Founder & Lead Producer
TRUTHEXPLOSIONMAGAZINE.COM | "From my first year of University there is one night that stands out in my mind. It wasn't some campus party or pub night, it wasn't a house party downtown or crashing a frat kegger, it was a reunion party that a bunch of High-School friends had in our home town...Maybe this is the feeling I am trying to recreate on a weekly basis." [REVIEW]
EXPLOREMUSIC.COM | APRIL 2010 [INTERVIEW/IN-STUDIO PERFORMANCE]
PUNKNEWS.ORG | APRIL 2010 [INTERVIEW]
ABSOLUTEPUNK.COM | APRIL 2010 [INTERVIEW]
THEPUNKSITE.COM | APRIL 2010 [INTERVIEW]
GROUNDCONTROLMAG.COM | APRIL 2010 [FEATURE/INTERVIEW]
PUNKMEUP.COM | APRIL 2010 [ENTREVUE]
WHISTLERQUESTION.COM | APRIL 2010 [INTERVIEW]
WESTCOASTWEASEL.COM | APRIL 2010 [INTERVIEW]
BRING.ON.MIXED.REVIEWS.COM | APRIL 2010 [INTERVIEW]
|
|
|
