Review: That's Outrageous!- Teenage Scream (2011)

Band: That's Outrageous!

Release: Teenage Scream

Genre: Post-Hardcore/Electro

Label: Rise Records

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thatsoutrageous

Tracklist:

1. The Poughkeepsie Tapes

2. Headshot At The Ballet Recital

3. Teenage Scream

4. #Winning

5. Star 69

6. So, I'm Thinking Of Starting A Clothing Line...

7. Is It 2012 Yet?

8. New York Chainsaw Massacre, The

9. Re: Why I Killed My Girlfriend

10. What Happens In Azeroth, Stays In Azeroth

Review: 2.5/10

Yeah, That’s Outrageous! is yet another Rise Records band that throws electronic influences into their breakdowns to set themselves apart from the rest. Definitely not the most original release of the year, but certainly not the worst. For a freshman release,Teenage Scream is not that bad. This is strictly for fans of bands like Attack Attack! andOf Mice & Men.

To start off, “Headshot at the Ballet Recital” begins with a generically heavy post-hardcore breakdown you’ve heard before, but one thing that sets this band slightly apart from the rest is that they really expand on the usage of the electronic elements more than the bands that just use it to expand their breakdowns, choruses and verses. After the initial breakdown, they give a lengthy electronic section that has decent singing vocals over it. The screams in this song are definitely not my choice as standout worthy and are forgettable.

The title track “Teenage Scream” is nothing you haven’t heard already. Though I do like the singing vocals, the rest of the track is just a band following others instead of creating their own sound and setting themselves apart from the pack. The drummer is straight up happy hardcore all around. About two minutes into the song, they break out into a shitty rap that uses cliché rhymes like “now tonight is the night, yeah I’m ready to rock/ I’m gonna chase you all around till you’re ready to drop.” Painful, I know.

Next item up for bid is the first single “#Winning,” which you should know where that hashtag comes from. It’s different (barely) from the other songs by being a little faster paced and being more hardcore-sounding than the rest of the electronic-infused album. The singing has been diminished at this point and sounds more strained for some odd reason. The mixes that are used in the vocals are quite lame because again, it’s all been heard before.

The song titles aren’t even original. I mean, how many bands can you think of that use random titles like “So, I’m Thinking Of Starting A Clothing Line…” and indeed have nothing to do with starting an actual clothing line? The chorus says “I wanna be worth it,” making for some band trying to hide their emotional lines behind a generic song title. Been there, heard that. The guitars are very monotone and hardly show any talent whatsoever.

Oh yeah, this is where it gets interesting. Not. “Is It 2012 Yet?” is straight electro without any instrumentation, and is that dubstep I hear? Well, not many post-hardcore bands incorporate dubstep into their music, so they get a C- for originality. Garbage is all I can say for this.

If you haven’t gotten the idea yet, I like to critique actual music, not generic garbage like this. On the only positive note I will leave about this album, the singing is really good. If you are a fan of Attack Attack! and Asking Alexandria, then you might dig this album, though even that is saying a lot.