Despite a band name that no one knows what to do with at first, The Menzingers have steadily built up a strong fanbase in the punk community with endless touring and three consistently solid albums. The newest of them is entitled On The Impossible Past, and not only is it their strongest release yet, but it's a distinct contender to become a classic punk record. The Menzingers' albums have always sounded personal, but On The Impossible Past is even more direct, with the lyrics making overt references to people and places from the band members' lives. Even though most listeners won't share their Scranton to Philly past, the references go a long way towards making the album's atmosphere more palpable.
Though they still show plenty of muscle, the band's sound has smoothed somewhat on this release. There may be a little less punk fury and a little more melancholy, but the musicians' performances on the album are all tight and expressive. Rather than just clatter away with predictable punk riffing, the guitars supply each song with distinct tones, a bright distortion here or a shimmering chorus effect there, and the rhythm section really helps build the tension and pace of each track. It all serves perfectly to match the lyrics, which simply but eloquently describe four punks growing up. There's a distinct awareness of time on this record, and the songs show evidence of reminiscence and regret at every turn. It would be easy to go the emo route and simply whine about getting older, but the Menzingers are far more observant than that, and they've found myriad shades and hues in their maturity, both bitter and sweet. Even when singers Tom May and Greg Barnett's voices uncoil into screams, the album remains touching. Not necessarily in a Lifetime channel sense, but more in the sense that the songs touch you. This is an album that has a noticeable effect, not one that simply slides by in the background. It's easy to imagine an audience full of punks all coming to grips with turning thirty, singing along with the words, "Cause I cursed my lonely memory with picture perfect imagery/Maybe I'm not dying I'm just living in decaying cities/But I'm still healthy I'm still fine, I'll be spending all my time/Reading the obituaries."
For many listeners, On The Impossible Past is going to be a perfect album, hitting every note it needs to. If this is what punk rock is going to sound like in the 21st century, it's fallen into good hands.
-Review by TZARATHUSTRA
P.S. - The word Menzingers is a respelling of the word Minnesingers, which is German for a kind of troubador in the 12th-14th centuries.
