+44 – When Your Heart Stops Beating

Artist: +44
Album: When Your Heart Stops Beating
Label: Interscope
Purchase: Smart Punk
Release Date: November 13, 2006

Overall: 8.0
Music: 8.0
Lyrics: 8.0
Production: 8.5

Ex Blink 182’s Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker set out to make something new with +44 but is that what they ended up with? The band we originally set to be an electronic act but they took a different road when Carol Heller left the band and added guitarists Shane Gallagher and Craig Fairbaugh to finish the lineup.

Beginning the album is the upbeat track “Lycanthrope” which resembles a Blink 182 sound and “Baby Come On” also rings of Blink 182 bass lines and lyrics. One could almost believe that this album is the next Blink 182 album with the first three tracks. The first single “When Your Heart Stops Beating” is filled with bouncing bass and synths. Its after this point that the album takes a bit of a turn and the songs start releasing a lot of emotion with lyrics that you know are towards ex Blink 182 guitarist Tom Delong. “155” is another track that has some electronic backings giving the song a nice beat while “Lillian” is lead by an acoustic track and sing along lyrics. The dark lyrics and emotional music come on out “Weatherman” and “No it Isn’t.” The songs are overall good and have their upbeat parts yet are depressing at times, but I’m sure thats what Mark was feeling about the whole Blink 182 fallout. “Make You Smile” includes some lyrics from Heller for what is one of the most electronic sounding songs on the album, think The Postal Service with some added Female vocals. The album finishes out with “Chapter 13” which has a simple but pleasurable feel to it.

I liked hearing Mark’s voice again as well as his bass style and Travis’s drumming. +44’s debut is the closest thing to Blink 182 but I would have been sad if this was the next Blink 182 album. Mark, Tom, and Travis had something special and we will probably never hear that combination again. If you enjoyed Blink 182 and if you felt like Angels & Airwaves didn’t quite please you be sure to give +44 a spin for something different.

Track Listing
1. Lycanthrope
2. Baby Come On
3. When Your Heart Stops Beating
4. Little Death
5. 155
6. Lillian
7. Cliffdiving
8. Interlude
9. Weatherman
10. No, It Isn’t
11. Make You Smile
12. Chapter 13