It’s a weird thing when one of your favorite bands signs to a major label. After a stellar EP, a great album, and a pretty good second album, All Time Low returns with their major label debut, ‘Dirty Work’. While the sound of the band’s last album, ‘Nothing Personal’, may have left a bad taste in a few people’s mouths, those people will have to get used to it. ‘Dirty Work’ expands upon that album’s sound, fleshing it out, and making it even better.
The album starts out with opener “Do You Want Me (Dead?)”, a great introduction for new fans, ones with no knowledge of their previous material. The song represents the rest of the album pretty well, and hooks listeners in early. On the other hand, the album’s second track, “I Feel Like Dancin’”, is everything the album isn’t. A simple song with a simple dance beat, used to do anything but stand out on the radio. It seems like All Time Low is just the latest band to write this kind of song. It’s not terrible, but it’s nothing special and, luckily, the sound only lasts for the one track. The next two tracks, “Forget About It” and “Guts”, possess the same pop-rock qualities as the opener. Both tracks, especially “Guts”, are proof that the boys can be huge.
“Time-Bomb” is a track that a lot of fans have already heard, due to vocalist Alex Gaskarth leaking it a few months ago. The finished version on the album isn’t too different from the demo Gaskarth released, but the added production makes this the better version. This is followed by the funnest track on the album, the seemingly Def Leppard inspired “Just The Way I’m Not”. With catchy lyrics, and the biggest song-a-long chorus the band has ever written, this track should be played at every All Time Low concert from here on out.
Unfortunately, the next two tracks are forgettable. “Under A Paper Moon” and “Return The Favor”, while catchy enough, just fall a bit short compared to the rest of the album. Luckily, “No Idea” picks the album back up, if only for the duration of the track. A stand-out track, “No Idea” brings relatable – albeit somewhat basic – lyrics and ideas together with great music. If the album was released in the fall, this song would be the perfect single.
Speaking of completely forgettable tracks, “A Daydream Away” fits that mold perfectly. The obligatory acoustic track, the corny lyrics are only overshadowed by the overly simple melody and the generic strings. This is All Time Low’s “Hey There Delilah”, only without that initial period of actually enjoying the track before it gets overplayed. The next track, “That Girl”, is just a fun, Summer-type song. This is the song that should get blasted in your car stereo while driving to the beach.
The final track on the album is also the best on the album. “Heroes” is the track that old-school All Time Low fans have been waiting a long time for. Rian Dawson’s drumming takes listeners back to the band’s first EP, “Put Up Or Shut Up”. Gaskarth’s lyrics seem to come straight from the minds of the kids that have turned their backs on the band. In the end, he bares his fangs, with lyrics such as “I’m not a hero, I’m a liar/I’m not a savior, I’m a vampire.” It’s refreshing to hear a band actually take on their critics and defend their change in sound. All Time Low makes no apologies, and “Heroes” drives that point home.
All Time Low has gone from a promising young pop-punk band to a budding mainstream pop-rock quartet. Fans that were turned off by the last album won’t be swayed back with this release. While the album isn’t perfect, its positives outweigh its negatives. Songs like “Heroes”, “That Girl” and “Just The Way I’m Not” make this a must buy for any All Time Low fan. This is one of the best albums of the Summer, and it’s going to be in a lot of stereos for the rest of the year. All Time Low deserves to be the next band to breakout of the scene. Hopefully, this is the album that gets them there.
Written by Robert Fitton. Star rating: 3 & ½ Stars out of 5.
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