Even If It Kills Me

by Motion City Soundtrack

Overview

With punk-pop stalwarts blink-182 now out of the running, Motion City Soundtrack could very well be crowned the genre's new torchbearers. Theirs is a punk-pop untainted by emo, unfazed by hardcore, and firmly focused on the latter element -- pop music. To that end, Even If It Kills Me finds the band working with (among others) Cars co-founder and veteran knob-twiddler Ric Ocasek, who piles their harmonies and distorted guitars into crunchy blocks of radio gold. Motion City Soundtrack share more than a few similarities with Ocasek's former group -- their dedication to the pop genre, for instance, with roots in something harder -- and his presence is a warm tribute to a band whose efforts deserve some veteran recognition. As before, frontman Justin Pierre is the star of this album, whether he's doing his part to liven up a semi-sedate ballad ("The Conversation" -- one of the album's only downer tracks) or channel the commercial spirit of former single "Everything Is Alright." In fact, Even If It Kills Me does seem to consciously aim for commercial acceptance, but rarely at the expense of the quirks and literate lyrics that first endeared Motion City Soundtrack to their fans. There's simply more radio-minded material here, from the beefy bass-driven "This Is for Real" to the mix of synthesized pop/rock and latter-day Guster in "Hello Helicopter." By splitting production duties between power pop veteran Adam Schlesinger, Eli Janney, and the aforementioned Ocasek, Motion City Soundtrack also avoid the seventh-inning stretch -- that nebulous point on Memory and I Am the Movie where the albums' final tracks began to suffer from being so similar to their predecessors. There's no lull here, just fast-paced fun -- which, given the band's motion-centric name, is both appropriate and tuneful. ~ Andrew Leahey

Product Details

Release Date:	08/05/2008
Label:	EPITAPH
UPC:	0045778686216

Tracks

1. Fell In Love Without You
2. This is For Real
3. It Had To Be You
4. Last Night
5. Calling All Cops
6. Can't Finish What You Started
7. The Conversation
8. Broken Heart
9. Hello Helicopter
10. Where I Belong
11. Point of Extinction
12. Antonia
13. Even If It Kills Me

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Motion City Soundtrack   Primary Artist
Jesse Johnson   Vocals (Background)
Matt Taylor   Vocals (Background),Piano,Keyboards,Guitar (Bass),Vocals (Background)
Rachel Minton   Vocals
Justin Courtney Pierre   Guitar,Vocals,Keyboards
Adam Schlesinger   Piano
Joshua Cain   Guitar,Vocals (Background)
Max Bemis   Vocals
Tony Thaxton   Drums,Percussion,Vocals (Background)
Ric Ocasek   Keyboards
Shawn Harris   Vocals
Jesse Munro Johnson   Keyboards,Glockenspiel,Moog Synthesizer,Vocals (Background)
Korin Louis   Featured Artist

Technical Credits

Chris Shaw   Audio Engineer,Mixing,Engineer
Motion City Soundtrack   Audio Production,Composer
Arjun Agerwala   Audio Engineer,Engineer
Geoff Sanoff   Audio Engineer,Engineer
Ric Ocasek   Audio Production,Producer
Eli Janney   Arranger,Producer
James Thornton   Photography
John Holbrook   Engineer
Justin Courtney Pierre   Composer
Jesse Johnson   Composer,Composer
Rudyard Lee Cullers   Engineer
Femio Hernandez   Assistant Engineer
Adam Schlesinger   Producer
Tom Lord-Alge   Mixing
Matthew Taylor   Composer
Joshua Cain   Composer
Tony Thaxton   Composer
Michael Trepagnier   Assistant Engineer
Bryan Sheffield   Photography
Matt Taylor   Composer
Nick Pritchard   Design,Art Direction
Tom Baker   Mastering