Why is The Suicide Machines’ Steal This Record on my best 1,000 albums ever list?
May the record show that The Suicide Machines have stolen their way into my heart (and another entry on the best 1,000 albums ever project).
What does The Suicide Machines’ Steal This Record mean to me? What does it make me feel? Why is it exciting or compelling?
One of The Suicide Machines’ many strengths is their versatility. Nominally known as an outstanding (in my not-so-humble opinion) punk or ska punk band, it’s really fun to see them in sort of pop punk-meets-reggae mode on “Stand Up.” It’s equally fun to hear a band that clearly is packed with great musicians gel in this way, creating a sound that’s both loose and tight, if you can dig.
Loose in the sense that the fellas clearly sound like they’re having fun and enjoy playing together, perhaps even more on this kind of song that’s a little outside of their typical wheelhouse. And then tight in the sense of… well, I’ll let one of my favorite songs ever, “Tight,” by Murphy’s Law, explain.
“Unbreakable” might be my favorite song of the 14-song set, thanks to an exceptional chorus that emerges out of the furious, nearly hardcore punk verses.
It’s the second half of the album that really holds together best and elevates Steal This Record as a whole. “Stay” is a really fun pop punk song that has the classic bouncy Suicide Machines melody from lead singer Jason Navarro.
As a massive R.E.M. fan, I wish that when bands cover them that they would sometimes look to songs other than “It’s the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine).” But at least The Suicide Machines do the work to recraft it into a fun, fast-paced pop punk number.
Some stats & info about The Suicide Machines – Steal This Record
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Rock Music, Ska Punk, Detroit Bands, Third Wave Ska Revival, Punk Rock, Pop Punk, Alternative Rock
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – not ranked!
- All Music’s rating – 3 out of 5 stars
- When was Steal This Record released? 2001
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #829 out of 1,000
The Suicide Machines’ Steal This Record on Spotify
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective take on what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.