New Found Glory/International Superheroes of Hardcore - Tip of the Iceberg/Takin' It Ova!

It’s been one hell of a rollercoaster ride for New Found Glory in the past couple of years. In 2006 the band attempted to write and record an accomplished, ‘mature’ album that would show their fans they’ve outgrown the simple, fun pop-punk style that they frankly did far better than anyone else in the late 90s and early 00s. Which would have been fine if the result, Coming Home, hadn’t sucked so badly. That album’s mid-tempo, adult contemporary (shudder) sound sent many longtime supporters running for the hills and was the likely catalyst for the band’s subsequent drop from Geffen Records.

The following year the band regrouped and as a peace offering released From The Screen To Your Stereo Part II on old home Drive-Thru Records. While not a complete return to form, the album was a step up from Coming Home (not a difficult feat by any means, have I mentioned how bad that album was?) and covering another round of movie songs was a smart way to win back fans and restore some of the band’s floundering credibility.

Admittedly, I was excited when plans for a new EP on Bridge 9 Records were announced by the band. While perhaps a confounding partnership to the casual fan, NFG’s roots in hardcore are well-documented. And the EP in question, Tip of the Iceberg, sounds like New Found Glory if they were on Bridge 9 which is pretty handy since that’s you know, exactly what it is.

Three NFG originals kick off Tip of the Iceberg and do so in blazing fashion. The opening title track is a 95 second burst of pop-hardcore, complete with a fast drum beat and gang vocals that segue into a bridge that’s heavy by NFG’s standards. “Dig My Own Grave” follows and its bass-drum heavy foundation is akin to “At Least I’m Known For Something”, one of the better tracks on 2004’s Catalyst. The breakdown at the song’s end, with guitarist Chad Gilbert screaming ‘I need to learn from my mistakes’ keeps it from being a carbon copy.  “If You Don’t Love Me” has driving, melodic verses that crescendo into a faster, hardcore-tinged chorus to create a sound reminiscent of Lifetime’s more poppy moments.

The three covers here are solid, loyal versions of the originals. New Found Glory doesn‘t take any chances here, which is fine because these songs are already great. Why potentially make them worse? “No Reason Why” and “Here We Go Again”, originally by Gorilla Biscuits and Shelter respectively, both sound quite fun being covered here. Originally by Lifetime, “Cut The Tension” closes the disc on a strong note and NFG’s version beefs up both the chorus and bridge of the song quite a bit.

The second part of this release is Takin’ It Ova!, a full-length from NFG alter egos International Superheroes of Hardcore. Chad Gilbert handles vocal duties under the alias Captain Straight Edge and is pretty talented at that whole throaty yell thing. The songs are largely self-parodying, apparent by titles such as “Hardcore Hokey Pokey”, “Screamo Gotta Go” and “Superhero Sellouts”. I suppose it’s fine for what it is, but I can imagine the novelty wearing off after a couple of listens. Just check out Good Clean Fun’s Between Christian Rock And A Hard Place instead if you want some humorous hardcore.

New Found Glory - Tip of the Iceberg

International Superheroes of Hardcore - Screamo Gotta Go