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Dirty Work (Jun. 7, 2011) - All Time Low

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All Time Low completed their Dirty Work tour while the tour's namesake album was still in the can. A release date of June 7, 2011 (U.S.) was recently announced. The first single from the album, "I Feel Like Dancin'," has been available for download since early April.

I was at All Time Low's Charlotte stop on The Dirty Work Tour. They played at The Fillmore, which is a nice venue but there's so much security it can be distracting. Some of the clips from All Time Low's 2010 movie Straight to DVD were filmed there.

Every time in the past I've seen All Time Low I really enjoyed their set. They have a lot of fun energy that has felt more punk in attitude than most vintage punk fans would admit to.

While I did enjoy the show, this one didn't knock me out like the many other times I have seen All Time Low. I don't know if it was because of me or them.

I have really enjoyed following many new 21st century bands over the years to see how they navigate their ascent into "rock stardom" (or fall off the track). The key to my insight has been watching these young bands play live instead of just listening to their records. The problem happens when promising bands with great live shows get pulled into the studio by producers that give them that "cookie-cutter" sound. It's the same sort of thing that has happened many times in the corporate end of the music business - like in the early 80s when record companies put skinny ties on bands, gave them a name that started with "The," and put them through the "new wave processing machine."

This still happens and it's enormously prevalent with pop-punk bands like All Time Low. My take has been that All Time Low have been a leader in pop-punk, which when done well could be tangential to true power pop. My worry is as they get more popular and more under the influence of fame and worse - corporate music - they'll just end up becoming a cookie cutter version of themselves.

I was hit a bit in the face with this concern at the The Dirty Work Tour show in Charlotte. I can't say they were having a bad night because for the most part they were doing what they do. Perhaps I was expecting some sort of progression forward. But I got this creepy feeling that the corporate music machine was getting its hooks into this band. Keep doing the same old schtick, only this time the quantity of bras hanging off of guitarist Jack Barakat's mic was staggering. Many were so supersized I figure they must use "prop bras" now to supplement any that are actually thrown by fans.

I haven't heard much from All Time Low's album Dirty Work, which is All Time Low's major label debut. The little bit I have heard does lead me to believe they are in danger of becoming a "formula." I hope this is not true and if it does happen, I hope it doesn't destroy them and that they can eventually re-emerge without losing their core mojo.

Meanwhile, I've heard rumours Blink-182 may be headlining the 2011 Honda Civic Tour and that All Time Low will be one of the support acts. I hope that's true on many levels. The first time we interviewed All Time Low's Alex Gaskarth, it was clear Blink-182 were a major influence on him and he said his dream tour would be playing with Blink-182, Foo Fighters, and Jimmy Eat World. I'd like to see Alex live his dream of touring with Blink. I'm also hoping All Time Low can get some pointers from Blink. I saw Blink-182's 2009 summer tour and they were great: they still had that high-school/college-type silliness between songs but their connection with the audience was electric. More important, Blink-182 have a great catalog of clever songs both funny and serious.

So I'm not giving up. Just waiting...

All Time Low - Dirty Work Original Album Tracks

Do You Want Me (Dead?) I Feel Like Dancin' Alex Gaskarth co-wrote this song with Weezer's Rivers Cuomo. Forget About It Guts This song has The Sounds' Maja Ivarsson on it. Time-Bomb Just the Way I'm Not Under a Paper Moon Return the Favor No Idea A Daydream Away That Girl Heroes Additional Tracks on iTunes Versions of Dirty Work Bad Enough for You Get Down On Your Knees and Tell Me You Love Me iTunes Deluxe Version My Only One iTunes Deluxe Version Merry Christmas, Kiss My Ass iTunes Deluxe Version

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