Sick Of It All
Based on a True Story
Century Media Records
Review by: ~ Kevin

After a nearly four year hiatus Sick of it all blast back with their latest effort "Based on a True Story". What a fitting album title indeed because these guys lived everything they speak of in their music. For those of you that are not familiar with this band, Sick of it All have been around for almost 24 years beginning with the classic "Blood, Sweat, and No Tears" back in 1986. They come from the same cloth as bands like Agnostic Front and The Cro-Mags which were part of the forefront of East Coast Hardcore. With nine albums out, (Not including their two live albums and b-side records) and no signs of slowing down, Sick of it All continue to spread hardcore reality across the world.

Now that you the reader have been given the gist of the history of Sick of it All, on to the review. Usually bands from the era of hardcore tend to try to adapt to another style as time moves on, however Sick of it All continue to stay true to themselves as well as their fan base. If you are a fan of punk, metal, or just plain old school hardcore than this is the record for you. Over the years they have become better musicians and this can be seen here as this is their cleanest technique wise. The highlights as far as songs go, would be the lead single "Death or Jail", "The Divide " and "The Lowest Common Denominator" however the entire album is solid and is easily better than their last two albums "Death To Tyrants" and "Life On The Ropes".

If you like hard hitting, truthful, hardcore punk than I would suggest that you not only check out this album but that you also check out their entire discography. This album has something for anyone and is probably one of my favorites of the year so far. As long as there is a thirst for hardcore punk, Sick of it All will be one of the last original bands from that era that will still be standing.

http://www.myspace.com/sickofitallny