A great debut effort (Dude Ranch - blink-182)

Member Name: shaneo632

Product:	Dude Ranch - blink-182
Date:	13/09/09 (4 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Punchy vocals and riffs

Disadvantages: Rough production values

I don't think that Dude Ranch is as refined or as catchy as their most famous effort, Enema Of The State, but that's hardly surprising considering it was made in 1997 and was thus just as the band were really finding their feet. This album is characterised by a stark difference to what would become Blink's signature sound - this is a lot more rough around the edges and quite gritty considering its low production values. Like the albums that followed, though, it does have the same themes - it is very much concerned with going into teenage angst, love, and the duality of that with having fun and such. It balances comedy and serious issues quite well.

The best song on the album is probably Dammit, which is about growing up and how people hate doing it but ultimately it's a rite of passage and things usually work out for the best this way. It's ironic hearing this from a band who quite rightly pride themselves on being juvenile and in a stage of arrested development, so perhaps they're being ironic. It's one of their best songs in their entire catalogue, so I almost wish that it had been remastered since, but to the same end, its rough differentiates it from when Blink "made it" with their next album and were allowed a clean and robust production. The song, through its form, in fact shows how they've grown up, or at least moved on and progressed through life.

Another very good song is called Apple Shampoo - despite a bland, strange title, it's got a great melody, and whilst it's quite difficult to decipher what on Earth the song is about, I really like it as a simple piece of heavy punk above all else!

This isn't their best album by far, but it's still a great effort for a band that clearly produced it on a shoestring budget. This is a massive achievement considering, and obviously helped to propel them to fame thanks to its very catchy hooks and riffs. Great stuff.

Summary: A bit sketchy but works perhaps because of it