In honor of Relient K’s new album “Forget and Not Slow Down” hitting stores yesterday, I want to do a nice little write-up of the sugary pop-punk band for all ya’ll to read. I have no other purpose in writing this merely because I want to. 
So I hope that if you like Relient K and are reading this, you’ll maybe leave a comment with some love- or if you’ve never listened to them before, hopefully this’ll make ya want to check them out! Either way, happy readings.
My adoration for Relient K began Sophomore year. I was on vacation in California and bored out of my mind. So while on that trip I tried my best to just discover as much new music as possible from Amazon.com to keep me busy. Sure enough, one of the bands I found was Relient K. I’d seen the cover art everywhere as of recently for Mmmhmmm (sp? haha) and was very intrigued. Upon buying the album at Best Buy for $10 I was in love. It was like listening to the child of blink-182. How did I not know of these guys sooner? ”The One I’m Waiting For” was a perfect opener to the album with it’s clear So-cal influence being an all-too-fitting soundtrack to my despised trip. Then songs like “High of 75″ and “This Week the Trend” inspired me, putting me on high.
The next album they released, “Five Score and Seven Years Ago” is actually one of the most important CDs of my life when I think about it. The first real track, “Come Right Out and Say It” was outlining all the thoughts I had towards my girlfriend at the time, Danielle, that I was refusing to address/admit. And the other songs like, “The Best Thing” and “Must Have Done Something Right” that talked about innocent, awesome love was reminding me of everything I DIDN’T have but pined for so much. So needless to say at this point, Relient K’s release started to get me thinking and it made me grow a bit of a backbone. After Danielle and I broke up, Harriet entered my life not long after and together her and I enjoyed Relient K immensely. Not realizing at first that the sincere love songs were actually painting pictures of the love WE had, plenty of car trips were spent blasting them and singing along. But then, yes, one day it hit us that while we listened to Relient K, we weren’t just singing along to the songs… we were singing to each other. ”We should get jerseys because we make a great team.” How many times do you think I sang that while looking straight at her and stroking her hair while driving? Especially on the song, “I’m Taking You With Me,” it managed to plop a spot on the exclusive list of songs that make me think of Harriet it’s so fitting. When she moved away it became something of an anthem for me. ”If home is where the heart is then my home is where you are.” Probably one of my most favorite quotes to date.
After the release of Five Score and Seven Years Ago, their Christmas album delighted me to no end. Their version of “Sleigh Ride” is probably one of the most amazing Christmas songs ever crafted, make no mistake. I played it endlessly during the Christmas of ‘08. Sadly, not so much last year. Sadly, I didn’t listen to much x-mas music at all last year! What the deuce, man.
So that’s where I’ve been with Relient K… anything else to mention?
Yes. One of Relient K’s biggest draws and biggest drawBACKS are their lyrics. You either love ‘em or hate ‘em. Most people hate them haha. But I dunno, if you can have a certain levity while you listen, Relient K is just a joy. The intentional overly poppy lyrics can be so much so long as you don’t take them too seriously. And I mean, even if you don’t care for their lyrics, the music they make is still wonderful. The production values are quite wonderful on their latest works. Matthew Thiessen’s piano tone is so full and glorious. On their song, “The Best Thing,” his piano intro is godly. And then on “Must Have Done Something Right,” their instrumental interlude between the first chorus and the second verse is like a perfect homage to 60s sugar pop and sounds like a groove you’d hear in the opening credits to a movie where everything is going right for the protagonist.
In the end, one’s love for Relient K all depends on the lyrics. If you can enjoy the lyrics, it’s impossible not to enjoy the music. Relient K never falls short on making great MUSIC. And that’s why today once I get the courage to leave my apartment, I’m going to walk to Target and pick up their new album because I know it’s going to be one solid buy that will bring good vibes into my life. And… if all goes well, maybe Matthew’s lyrics will once again be an accompaniment to my life and say all the things hanging around in my head that I can’t seem to say myself.
http://www.myspace.com/relientk
Songs to listen to: High of 75, Come Right Out and Say It, Must Have Done Something Right, At Least We Made It This Far, Sleigh Ride.
