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Hit the Lights - Until We Get Caught Album Cover
Author's Rating
Vocals 6
Musicianship 5.25
Lyrics 5.5
Production 6.5
Creativity 1
Lasting Value 5
Reviewer Tilt 6
Final Verdict: 50%
Member Ratings
Vocals 7.75
Musicianship 7.92
Lyrics 7
Production 8.5
Creativity 7.33
Lasting Value 7.67
Reviewer Tilt 8.25
Average: 78%
Inside AP.net
This review was written by an AP.net staff member.

Hit the Lights - Until We Get Caught

Reviewed by: Scott Weber (11/21/05)
Hit the LightsUntil We Get Caught
Release Date: November 22, 2005 (Re-release)
Record Label: Triple Crown Records


Within 20 seconds of popping in this CD, I had to eject it and make sure I wasn’t listening to new Fall Out Boy demos. The vocal stylings, chord progressions, and mixing all sound very familiar – there’s even gang vocal shouts in the background. Yet despite these similarities, Hit the Lights is very capable of making some noise of their own. Despite this, the CD is permeated with parts that sound exactly like other bands. This EP is 5 songs of infectiously catchy pop-punk that is decently produced and is full of talent, but you have to wonder how much of the instrumentation was indirectly taken from other bands. Still, the verses are full of thick, driving melodies that induce foot-tapping. The second track, “At 6:00, We Go Live,” really fascinated me, basically because it was composed entirely of different sections of pop-punk songs I’d heard before. The drum fills, the stop and go breakdowns, the strumming patterns…it’s all very familiar. Yet I can’t say that the result was anything I didn’t enjoy. Hit the Lights don’t pretend to be anything they’re not – they play catchy, formulaic pop-punk, and they do it well.

The reason all these parts sounded so recognizable is simple – they’ve been used because they’re effective and catchy. While “Save Your Breath” features vocals literally identical to Patrick from Fall Out Boy, it doesn’t detract from anything. There’s not much more to say about Hit the Lights other than they are basically a re-hashing of a ton of other bands out there. The instrumentation in “These Backs Are Made for Stabbing” sounds exactly like a New Found Glory song, while “Loose Lips Sink Ships” sounds like a Never Heard of It song. Essentially, Hit the Lights has created a best-of pop-punk EP. It’s a good listen and the songs are catchy, but it’s virtually impossible to not draw comparisons to other similar bands. Silent Movie Records has a stone on their hands that with a little refining could become a gem. Until then, if you like Fall Out Boy, you’ll love this CD. Pick it up to tide you over until their full-length comes out. Pop-punk junkies will fall head over heels for Hit the Lights while others like me will find it enjoyable, but easily forgettable.
 
Displaying posts 1 - 15 of 25.
11:36 PM on 12/20/05
#2
Scott Weber
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Originally Posted by apm158
if u want to hear every pop punk band to ever play on this Earth rolled into one band, listen to Hit The Lights hahaha
basically.
04:46 AM on 02/07/06
#3
gibson_21
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Open mouth... Insert foot ;)
04:17 PM on 04/01/06
#4
LilRyan732
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Originally Posted by gibson_21
Open mouth... Insert foot ;)
Yeah definitely...
06:57 PM on 04/01/06
#5
OveriseFan
is not Oversized...
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Scott got PWN54URD
08:28 PM on 04/01/06
#6
Scott Weber
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uh..how did i get pwned again? because they wrote a song about this?
08:51 PM on 04/01/06
#7
Buried A Lie
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Originally Posted by Scott Weber
uh..how did i get pwned again? because they wrote a song about this?

thats actually pretty damn cool they wrote a song about you. well, if i were you i would think so. i dont think your review was bad at all. You weren't an asshole or anything. You gave a review that if i were to give a review, it would've been along the same lines. scott did not get "pwned" or whatever the stupid fucking computer nerd talk is. i wasnt fond of this band to begin with but now i just dont wanna listen to them at all. How whiney do you have to be to write a song about a reveiw that wasn't even exactly a bad one????
09:21 AM on 04/02/06
#8
ducks eat 4free
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writing a song about a review that was "bashing" them is not whiny**.
they're merely sticking up for themselves as a band and showing that an EP does not define themselves musically. and they did a damn good job.
12:02 PM on 04/02/06
#9
Buried A Lie
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Originally Posted by ducks eat 4free
writing a song about a review that was "bashing" them is not whiny**.
they're merely sticking up for themselves as a band and showing that an EP does not define themselves musically. and they did a damn good job.

he didnt bash them. he wasn't being an asshole about it. i think everything he said was true. so what if they've sounded like something we've all heard before. first, that doesnt make them suck. And second, you can't say that it doesn't sound like something that has been done before, because it does. i think they are an alright band and i can inderstand how other people really like them, but what if every band wrote a song when a review said they weren't really original?? this has been said about so many bands. they probably knew it would get them important publicity on this site, and with all the kids who will listen to whoever this site promotes, they are probably creaming their pants over it right now.
12:18 PM on 04/05/06
TENCopeland
whatever
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i think some people are reading into this a bit too much.
02:15 PM on 04/09/06
muddysocks7
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i just hope it winds up being the new TBS v BN sort of drama from way back in the day
06:55 PM on 08/10/06
NGame
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I love the fact that this review is somewhat mentioned on the opening track to their album.
11:31 PM on 08/10/06
Scott Weber
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I love the fact that this review is somewhat mentioned on the opening track to their album.
It totally is. Haha. They've talked about it in interviews.
07:20 PM on 12/25/06
birdie67
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I seriously don't see how you're comparing Colin's voice to Patrick's. Colin can actually sing. =o
( have you ever heard Fall Out Boy live?)


and how was this not a bad review? he's basically telling them that they're not talented.
07:44 AM on 01/19/07
hunt_diesel
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Scott, how much do you love the fact that you are part of a great song? Cuz I think that's pretty righteous. Rock/Write on.
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