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DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL Dusk and Summer (Universal) |
 POOR little rock'n'roll. When hip-hop and rap became the flag bearers for anti-establishment, stick-it-to-the-man posturing, rock was cast out into the cold. It's largely due to this reason that much of the last decade has seen rock music desperately struggling for previously effortless meaning, a need to not just flirt but marry and procreate with displays of introspection and emotion that border on the crass. And don't even get me started on how "emo" has become a legitimate genre. Dashboard Confessional is the poster child for this devolution. 'Tis an earnest outfit that marries decent punk rock chops to intensely personal wordplay. Dusk and Summer doesn't stray far from that formula, but in the words of a generation past, it just ain't got no soul. Yes, I enjoyed Vindicated as much as the rest of you. It was clever and heartfelt in the same way that made Hands Clean become a guilty pleasure. But remove any hint of subtlety and you get Dusk and Summer, typical of a genre so proud of the fact that it wears its heart on its sleeve that it went out and manufactured about four million T-shirts to celebrate. |
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