Strung Out – Blackhawks Over Los Angeles

Artist: Stung Out
Album: Blackhawks Over Los Angeles
Label: Fat Wreck Chords
Purchase: Smart Punk
Release Date: June 12, 2007

Overall: 8.0
Music: 7.0
Lyrics: 8.0
Production: 9.0

The wait for new Strung Out material is over! Strung Out is back with their seventh full-length album Blackhawks Over Los Angeles. They return with a more focused and driven approach to their songwriting, melding punk with melodic hardcore. It’s not a significant change from their earlier material, so fans won’t be disappointed. However, I’m a Strung Out fan and while I was listening to Blackhawks Over Los Angeles and it got to the fifth, sixth, seventh track etc. I was soon wishing they had changed things up. They are prolific almost to a fault. Although the band has grown over the years, they really haven’t progressed much musically or lyrically. I’m fine with that though. Maybe its nostalgia and the familiar predictability I know I can expect from Strung Out, but they will always have a place in my music collection.

The opening track “Calling” starts with a western melody that then turns into melodic punk-hardcore sound that has a similar flow as “Downtown”. The lyrics behind the songs are strong and flow well with Jason’s vocals. From those two songs and as well as the other songs on the CD are written on the subject of war, not necessarily what’s going on but the people that are caught in the middle of it all. Songs like “Letter Home” tells the story of a soldier writing to his family not knowing what might be the outcome for him and coming to a realization of what were his reasons for going to war. Although some songs touch on the subject of war, Blackhawks Over Los Angeles has a catchy pop-based song like “All The Nations” and their titled-track “Blackhawks Over Los Angeles” along with “Mission Statement” has that familiar sound that is Strung Out.

Their seventh full-length record is one that their fans will like and new ones will enjoy. From their opener “Calling” to the heartfelt personal song “Letter Home” about a soldier Strung Out has managed to keep their influence of punk, hardcore, and metal alive on Blackhawks Over Los Angeles.

Track Listing
1. Calling
2.Blackhawks Over Los Angeles
3. Party In The Hills
4.All the Nations
5. A War Called Home
6. Letter Home
7. Orchid
8. Dirty Little Secret
9. Downtown
10. The King Has Left The Building
11. Mission Statement
12. Diver