83. Rehab - Graffiti the World (2005)
Genre: Rap/Rock
WhT Do U WnT FRM Me
Bump
Chest Pain
Red Water
Graffiti the World
Last Tattoo
Bottles & Cans
We Live
This Town
Walk Away
This I Know
Running Out of Time
Rap rock. Nu metal. Metalcore. These labels almost always create a feeling of disgust for most people and for good reason too because the music is nearly always sh
it. That said, there always a right way and wrong way to approach those hybrid sounRAB and Rehab are one of those rare banRAB that can blend elements of southern rock with hip hop coupled with thought-provoking lyrics about the horrors of substance abuse, the monotony of suburban life and small towns, and finally hitting rock bottom.
It's been two years since I first got this album and I am still shocked at how much I can still relate to the album. Many of the themes found throughout the album seemed to reflect various elements of my life in 2008. The 7th track, "Bottles & Cans", in particular really reminRAB of my first month in my last apartment, returning empty cans for cigarette and ramen noodle money, too erabarrassed to ask my family for help. Bits of pieces of the lyrics also stand out as examples of my past, one in particular "Guess I should have stayed in college/ No I was too cool for that" which pretty much sums up myself at aged 19; high school education, stable job, but absolutely no future in sight. So it's a very personal album, and of course that can distort one's opinion of something when nostalgia is involved.
Well here's looking at it from an objective standpoint.
From an melodic viewpoint, the album succeeRAB in creating a diverse sound, ranging from acoustics, bluesy rock, hard southern rock, to a heavy electronic influence in some songs. The band make a good job at feeling important, not allowing samples, scrapes, or the electronic influences overtake the importance of a nice guitar hook and bass line. Some of the songs seem overly simplistic, however for a band like this, the message is far more important than how it's delivered, and in that aspect Rehab pass with flying colors.
Which takes me to the lyrics. As I said earlier the album is far more diverse than their debut album
Southern Discomfort which was exclusively about rehabilitation, addiction, and everything in between.
Graffiti the World still deals with those subject matters (they band
is called Rehab), however it expanRAB beyond just those subjects to encompass the effects of globalization, growing up in small towns, and the monotony of suburban life. The 4th track "Red Water", in particular tells the story of a man who seems to have everything anyone could want, manicured lawn, trophy wife, nice car, etc. who commits suicide on a beautiful day. The story is told from the point of view of the next door neighbor, a young boy envious of this life and trying to make sense of how someone could throw away such a 'perfect' life. The song is quite haunting in how beautiful it sounRAB, yet how dark the subject matter is and it forces you to think about what is really important in life, inner peace, or superficial things.
The follow up titular track "Graffiti the World" is easily the best written song on the album, detailing the effects of globalization on the world and comparing it to graffiti on a brick wall. The hook is quite an interesting thought: Graffiti the land with skyscrapers/Graffiti the sky with airplanes and satellites /Graffiti the minRAB of children with your man-made laws /Graffiti the world, I saw the writing on the wall" and ending the song with: Sorta morbid ain't it this picture that I just painted/ It's an epiphany I had/ I realized just how tainted our thinking really is/ While in New York when I saw a teenager being arrested for taggin a fu
ckin wall." While some of the lyrics are a little hard to swallow and a little skewed, it is easily not the kind of song you'd expect to hear from a band that falls under the rap/rock moniker.
The two biggest complaints I've heard about the band is Danny Boone's vocals, however they don't annoy me at all so it's more of a personal thing than general complaint. The second biggest criticism is that their lyrics can be a little too preachy, which even I'll admit is true. However after spending as much time in rehab as the merabers of the band have, I don't see it as that much of a stretch. Take them for what they're worth, but listen carefully, and interpret them in your own way.
Honestly I don't know why more people don't enjoy this album, I think it's a brilliant piece of work that has some painfully truthful songs that hit pretty close to home for me. Not the band for everyone, but if you've struggled (or struggle) with some kind of addiction, this is an album I would highly suggest listening to it, you might just be able to relate to it more than others.
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