Las Vegas Weekly

[Emo]

Taking Back Sunday

Then Again

Taking Back Sunday - New Again

The drama-plagued alt-emo breakouts’ fourth album opens with a plea disguised as a statement of declaration: “I am ready to be new again/I’m ready to hear you say who I am is quite enough.” Cyclical lineup changes and attacks on his personal and professional lives may have long put frontman Adam Lazzara on the defensive, yet Taking Back Sunday still falls somewhat short of recapturing the shout-along exhilaration of its first two efforts. Not that the familiar barrage of hard-and-fast riffs and dueling vocals is wholly past its prime. The band still packs quite enough of an angsty gut-punch to remain a viable scene staple, but no one would mistake its current incarnation as a jaw-droppingly “new again” entity.

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Taking Back Sunday

Beyond the Weekly

Taking Back Sunday

Billboard: Taking Back Sunday

Less preening and self-consciously clever, the 11 tracks represent a broader, harder-charging direction. There’s scarcely a moment of breathing room throughout; only “Where My Mouth Is,” a catchy mid-tempo downer that rues betraying loved ones for the misleading realities of fame and fortune, offers a respite from the now-trademark cyclone-like choruses. A great deal of regret hangs over the collection, but it’s of a heavier, more mature variety than the featherweight romantic variety previously milked for all the gold sales possible. Leave it to TBS to prove that when it comes to musical growing pains, the emotional ache can far outweigh the physical.