CD Review: Lifetime - "Lifetime"

Lifetime - "Lifetime"
(Decaydance, 2/6/07)

Over the past few years it's felt like another band announces a reunion every time I turn around, but few caused as much of a stir throughout the scene as Lifetime, when they made plans in 2005 to get back together for a set at that year's Hellfest. Due to legal problems, that festival ended up falling apart at the last minute, and what followed was a whirlwind of east coast promoters scurrying to set up shows for all of the bands that had already made the trip to the New Jersey area. Lifetime ended up playing three of those impromptu shows (Aug. 19 & 20, 2005 in Philadelphia, PA and Aug. 21 in Asbury Park, NJ), and announced a few months later that they would be officially reforming. In March of '06, the band signed to Decaydance (an imprint of Fueled By Ramen Records) and released a two-song single late that summer.

"Lifetime" is the band's first full-length in a full ten years. Honestly, I was a little anxious about the release of this album. I've come to expect the worse when it comes to band reunions, and I don't think—even had I hated it—that I could have, in good conscience, written a bad review about one of the most influential melodic hardcore bands of the 90s. Fortunately, Lifetime's latest offering doesn't disappoint, and I didn't have to resort to lying. In fact, I didn't have to try very hard at all to find nice things to say about this record. With eleven tracks clocking in at under 24 minutes, the band's self-titled album is something that old fans will love. Everything I've come to expect from—and love about—this band is present and accounted for. Melodic vocals delivered over speedy punk tempos? Check. Heart-on-your-sleeve lyrics? Check. Catchy hooks that deftly avoid sounding too "poppy"? Check. No songs longer than 2:45? Check. The only complaint that I can muster is that the production seems a little too polished for the old Lifetime that I'm used to. But now I'm just nitpicking...

For the most part, Lifetime fails to break any new ground with this album and in a way, it's somewhat disappointing that this new record sounds so much like their old material. Considering, however, the fact that Lifetime's past releases have been golden, I can't accuse them of making a mistake by sticking to the old adage: "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Rating: 4.5/5

Lifetime (official web site) • Lifetime on MySpace