Kill Lincoln, "Good Riddance To Good Advice" (Jump Start Records)
March 27, 2015
Ska punk that makes you want to skateboard
Kill Lincoln’s “Good Riddance to Good Advice” isn’t your run-of the mill ska album. While at times the band goes along with the stereotypical ska-pop-punk tropes of horns playing in perfect thirds and fifths, twangy guitar openings, and the occasional breakdown, the album is quite layered and is a pleasant listen. Like I said before, there are some stereotypical pop-punk chord progressions and group vocal things going on, combined with the generally posi-attitude of the songs, but that doesn’t stop Kill Lincoln from putting out songs with a lot of heart and emotions behind them. The opening song, “Ronald… Help Me” sounds like it a cross-section of 90’s ska. They then move in to their title track, “Good Riddance to Good AdviceÛ, and build upon that ska base by adding in a bunch of the afformentioned pop punk tropes. This continues in the third track, “Days I Spent insideÛ. But then, Kill Lincoln completely shakes it up with “Fire StarterÛ, a hardcore punk track with minor-chord horn parts that give the song an eerie feel while you’re trying to figure out what the hell is going on. It’s a completely unexpected departure from the 90’s-early 2000’s ska-punk Kill Lincoln is known for. They then get right back to the horn-filled skate punk in “$8 Beer Night” and “I’m Getting too Old for ThisÛ. Overall, it’s a pretty sold ska record, and manages to not sound like it should have been left back in 2005 with the rest of the genre.
RIYL: Reel Big Fish, Streetlight Manifesto, Less than Jake, Yellowcard
Recommended Tracks: 2, 4, 6