My instincts were right. The All-American Rejects' debut simply cannot be rejected. Ever since I bought this CD a couple of months ago, it has been a regular spin on my CD player.

This album consists entirely of songs with memorable hooks, up-tempo rhythms, melodic punk-pop choruses, and infectious lyrics. The album has been well-produced, enhancing the overall packaging of each song. More importantly, it's remarkable that such a young band has demonstrated these sophisticated pop sensibilities in their songwriting. The album contains eleven laudable songs, each of which is a worthy listen in its own right. Lead singer Tyson Ritter never misses a note, even transitioning in and out of falsetto, and the band adroitly blends hard driving guitars with keyboards and even orchestral arrangements. What's not to like?

With this debut album, the All-American Rejects have demonstrated they have sharp musical senses. Their music compares favorably with any emo-type artist you hear on today's radio. Between the band's natural musical talent and its alignment with today's hottest commercial sound, it wouldn't surprise me to hear more from the All-American Rejects. This young band is poised to make it big.


Never would have thought...   November 28, 2003
A.L.V. (from your friendly neighborhood 500)
28 out of 33 found this review helpful

If anyone would have told me that I would end up buying The All-American Rejects' album, I probably would have laughed in their face. I mean, I loved "Swing, Swing" and all, but owning the whole album? Not likely. Who are these guys anyway?

Well, something happened and I decided I was in need of some new music, so I decided to buy it. Turns out, I was happily surprised to find out that I just adore every song on the album (pretty much equally). The lead singer's voice is just very captivating, melodic, and powerful. Each song is very catchy and gut-wrenching at the same time...a GREAT driving record, in my opinion. It's definitely not an album that will be making history any time soon, but if you are looking for something to just listen to all the way through and enjoy, buy this. It's really worth a try...at least.


Pure Energy.   May 5, 2003
Jason Stein (Chula Vista, CA United States)
25 out of 30 found this review helpful

Praise: For a debut this is solid material. The band puts their sweat and energy into this cd making it an enjoyable ride. Start to finish there isn't a clunker on this disc. They should have many more hits from here aside from "Swing, Swing". Standout tracks include "My Paper Heart", "Swing, Swing", "Time Stands Still", "One More Sad Song", "The Last Song".

Criticism: All American Rejects strongly resemble Blink 182, Green Day, and other modern punk bands of today. They also don't stray too far from their formula, leaving the songs to blur from one to the other.

Conclusion: Buy this cd. It's enjoyable to listen to when you compare it to all the dull music out right now. It's not the best this band can do, but it's a great start. All American Rejects caught my attention because they reminded me of old school new wave/punk like The Cars, The Cure, New Order.


A classic CD that everyone can reltate to   February 22, 2003
christine (new york)
10 out of 11 found this review helpful

The All- American Rejects are anything but rejects. Thier debut album combines the emotion of Dashboard Confessional with the up beat music of pop-punk bands such as Sum-41 and Good Charlotte. Tyson Ritter's intense vocals make me feel like he's singing right to me. His voice sounds so young and fresh, just beautiful. Every song on the CD can be related to by any ordinary teen. The variety is awesome... you can pop this CD in the player to put you in a good mood for a date or you can listen to it while your laying on your bed, depressed about relationship problems. It works really well with my life.. aah haha. Any way, the AAR have proven their place in the music industry with their hit Swing, Swing, Swing as a band that anyone with eclectic taste could enjoy. I definitley recommend the All-American Rejects' debut album to anyone who enjoys the wonderful sounds of pop-punk/emo. peace.


Shockingly good, one of the best of 2003   February 24, 2005
Perry M. Koons (Crownsville, MD United States)
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

I wanted to hate this record, I really did. After hearing about how these guys were "emo" and sounded like all of the boring, cheesy pop punk on the radio today, I didn't buy this until about a year and a half after its release, and even then it was only for $1 in a used CD store "for a laugh". Surprise surprise, its a tight record of compact power pop songs brimming with emotion and pure enjoyment. The album is vaguely reminiscent of one of my all-time favorites, Candy's "Whatever Happened to Fun?", in that underneath the deceptively simple and upbeat song structures lie serious emotional themes. Lyrics and key words are repeated - "breathe," "fade," "cheating," "crying," "away" and many more. It's almost as if they wanted to create an epic album, as evidenced by the full production and dramatic vocals, but when they got to the lyrics department they couldn't think of anything except how much some girl hurt them. And that's kind of a cute premise, if ultimately a bit melodramatic. Now, I understand that pushes the record dangerously close to hideous "emo," and maybe in the lyrics that's fine. But rest assured that this is musically closer to Jimmy Eat World (great band) than Dashboard or any similarly styled artless bleeding heart garbage. It doesn't hurt that the band is so clearly tuned in to the classic pop-rock of Rick Springfield and Def Leppard, and this album should appeal to fans of those artists as much as any of the teen beat stuff around now. Overall, I only found one clunker on the whole record ("Drive Away" is silly Good Charlotte cheese, but even my favorite Candy record had ONE dud). The rest is proof that even silly teenagers can create enjoyable melodic rock, and maybe even mean something while doing it.

Best Tracks:
"My Paper Heart" - OK, OK, this is pretty much emo 101 - the falsetto vocals are more than a little overdone. But, the xylophone and drum machine provide a lot more than you expect in a song like this, and the outro draws from Springsteen in effective melodrama.
"Your Star" - A Def Leppard ballad meets classic Elvis Costello bounce, with a bit of Green Day thrown in. Don't believe me? Check it out, you'll be surprised.
"Swing Swing" - A deserved hit. Surprised they couldn't turn any of the other gems here into a similar smash.
"Time Stands Still" - The fourth track here, and the fourth raging success. Acoustic lead in gives way to a monster chorus. Great song.
"Why Worry" - This is the tune that really made me appreciate what these guys are doing here. So simple, both in the instrumental and lyrical departments, but so sincere. It's the AC/DC ethic in the pop punk arena - less is much more. This song is simply a gorgeous power pop neo-classic. It's almost as if the narrator is alone and repeating these lines to himself thinking of what could have been, hopeful but ultimately unwilling to face the facts that a relationship is over.
"The Last Song" - Well, the opener was epic, with the ultra hopeful finale of "spring blossoms you to me". This closing track is stunningly defeated in its view, after all the sad tracks the singer is finally giving up. But it's also optimistic in a sense - maybe he isn't giving up so much as moving on. Maybe I'm reading too much into this album - I mean, it's hardly classic literature - but I find the bookend tracks to be a great lesson in creating mood in an otherwise silly genre (pop punk).