Good Charlotte
The Young And The Hopeless
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For $13.75

Vaulting off the success of their self titled debut, Good Charlotte pushed their hit single, “Little Things” into the ears of America. After a stint on the 2001 Warped tour, a string of headline gigs and a trip down under, (their album went platinum in Australia and New Zealand) twin brothers Benji and Joel, and their punk rock pals, locked down in the studio to record the tracks for their 2002 disc.

With the help of producer Eric Valentine (Third Eye Blind, Smashmouth, Queens of the Stone Age) Good Charlotte knocked out fourteen new songs for their sophomore release, The Young and the Hopeless. These songs show maturity, creative momentum, with cutting edge from beginning to end.

The album’s first single, “Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous,” casts the band’s keen eye towards the hypocrisy of celebrity. “Always see it on TV or read it in the magazines/ Celebrities want sympathy/ All they do is piss and moan inside the Rolling Stone.”

As the guitars mash and kick, and the beats spit fire in every direction, GC explore a number of different lyrical subjects. On “The Anthem” they chronicle the plight of conformity and the status quo. Then “My Bloody Valentine” cops its gruesome theme from Edgar Allen Poe’s classic story, “The Tell Tale Heart” before “Emotionless” recalls the day the brothers’ father left the family.

Along with Eric Valentine’s brilliant production influence, The Young and the Hopeless is a powerful testament to the new punk rock. Built on a solid foundation of decibels, distortion and cynicism, these songs speak loud and clear for a generation of disaffected youth who are getting wise to the ways of the world.

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