Review: The Flatliners - Cavalcade

Appears at http://www.nationalunderground.org/news/must-have-albums/287-the-flatliners-cavalcade

Cavalcade shows immense growth from a young band whose increasing age positively correlates to its musical maturation. The Flatliners are still a young band, but their evolution has been astonishingly quick and, arguably, for the best. I'm hesitant to use the term "straight-up punk" because it can unfairly reduce a band to something basic and stale, and Cavalcade is by no means an unexpected curveball, but it is no less impressive. The band's progression has been logical but not predictable, and on Cavalcade, The Flatliners deliver an album that is immensely gratifying and absent of filler.

More than anything, Cavalcade is an extremely well-balanced record. The songs are wordy, but don't ramble. They are intense, but still melodic. They borrow Midwestern influences without overly resembling Dillinger Four (a remarkable feat considering three-fourths of the legendary band contribute vocals to "Bleed"). The theme of drinking is often tired, contrived, and overused, but here is not the case, as "Liver Alone" contains an incredibly catchy hook in the line, "Get up, get up, get up. You've got to drown it out and then drain the memory."

Frontman Chris Cresswell is clearly pushing himself vocally and in terms of songwriting. "Filthy Habits" unleashes a venomous scream, while the opening verse to "Here Comes Treble" is notably restrained, almost ballad-like. While he does explore a new range in several places, the trademark gruffness, for the most part, continues to dominate, meshing well with the up-tempo rhythms. Of course, it helps that Cresswell's vocal range is matched instrumentally, and the band seamlessly shifts from blazing skate-punk to lighthearted pop-punk and vice versa.

The Flatliners have reduced their ska side to a minimum, but it’s hard to miss something when the alternative is such a welcomed progression. That’s not to say that it never had a place, mind you. Cavalcade, as a whole, just feels thoroughly consistent, and again, this assessment isn’t based on the ska reduction so much as it is based on the entire musical spectrum. “He Was a Jazzman” is not simply “This Respirator” Part Two. That might be an initial thought, but by the third minute, all expectations are defied. “He Was a Jazzman” gradually transitions into a roaring refrain, dropping the ska riff and replacing it with much heavier dynamics.

On Cavalcade, the lyrical content is peppered with anthemic declarations of perseverance, regretful apologies to family members, and a general critique of music here and there. The band truly shines on the former, and "Carry the Banner" could not be a more perfect song title, as it, paired with the bridge-burning album closer, represents an optimistic attitude that ultimately prevails through the occasional moments of cynicism.

The band is tighter than ever before, and the rate at which their experience grows is remarkable. To quote Fat Mike, “The Flatliners are really cool, and they’re good. If we (NOFX) were that good when we were twenty years old, damn, we’d be popular now.” When a band can evoke a moderate amount of jealousy in one of its biggest influences, then it's quite apparent that that band is doing something right.