Album: “The Chronicles of Life & Death [Slipcase]”

Description

This is a DualDisc, which contains a CD on one side of the disc and a DVD on the other. <p>Good Charlotte: Benji Madden (vocals, guitars); Joel Madden (vocals); Billy Martin (guitars, keyboards); Paul Thomas (bass guitar); Chris Wilson (drums). <p>Additional personnel: Matt Radosevich (piano). <p>Recording information: Barefoot Studios, Hollywood, California (2004). <p>When it comes to a genre as stylistically specific as pop-punk, bands generally aren't expected to progress much beyond the standard mix of raging guitars, speedy drumming, and high-pitched melodic vocals singing paeans to teen rebellion. With 2004's THE CHRONICLES OF LIFE AND DEATH, however, Good Charlotte confounds expectations by delivering a sprawling concept album that borrows from a variety of distinctly non-punk music. Opening with a spooky, orchestral piece that sounds like a mix of John Williams and Arvo Part, the disc races from Cheap Trick-esque power pop (the title track) to shoegazer-y angst-rock ("In This World [Murder]") to Rufus Wainright-like sensitive piano ballads ("The Truth"). On "I Just Wanna Live," the group even tries its hand at rap, rhyming over a groove that's half Snoop Dogg/half Happy Mondays. For all its seeming incongruity, however, the record never sounds messy, but rather emerges as the work of a band eager to expand the boundaries of both its chosen style and its own musicality. (Note: There are two versions of the album, each containing a different bonus track.)