From the first second of this disc, the plastic seems to smolder of the skatepunk sound that the OFFSPRING have so made famous around the globe. I imagine that which each successive successful release from these boys, it gets harder and harder to find ways to be creative without breaking the mold that has made them famous. In a brief synopsis, “Conspiracy of One,” rocks hard and fast, but stops at a few notches below perfection. “Come out Swinging” starts things off with a bruiser of a track, capturing the intensity that this band is known for, with positive and spirited lyrics to get the listener motiviated. It’s got some crafty guitar work, and a chorus to kill for. From there, we get the freaking awful track, “Original Prankster.” If only this band would forgo putting out these shitty singles and stick their punk/hardcore guns, we’d all be a heck of a lot happier. “Million Miles Away,” is a typical OFFSPRING track that sticks another catchy chorus on the back of your brain, and then “Dammit, I changed again,” raises the barometer by providing an intelligent rant against the need to fit in, backed with a ferocious rhythm section. I really like that track, and is in my opinion, one of their best songs since the early days. “Living in Chaos,” represents a style change for these guys, forging a bouncy, rap/punk type sound, which actually isn’t as cheesey as it sounds. It’s a good song to play in your car with the windows rolled all the way down. The rest of the album hums along just fine, and the last track, “Conspiracy of One,” closes it out with a punch. The album artwork is the sharpest of all OFFSPRING albums yet, and the lyric booklet illustrations are amazing. I think it’s great that a band of the magnitude of the OFFSPRING puts alot of effort into their releases, and even includes a “thanks” list. It’s the not best album of the year, nor does it even make my top five, but alas, it’s another consistent outing from these professional punkers, and if anything, it’s refreshing to hear this band get harder and harder with their new material. It may lack the pure integrity of some of the lesser known independent punk and hardcore bands, but at least the OFFSPRING appear to have fun with what they are doing, and that’s something that I can accept. Not as good as “Americana,” when that album is at its best, but a worthy contender of your dollars.

Columbia

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