Despite the fact that they are broken up, Carry On is probably the second most talked about band in hardcore - American Nightmare being number one. There is always someone bringing up the band no matter where you go - record stores, concerts, and yes, the Internet. Granted, most of it is your typical messageboard talk about the edge-break/selling out of certain members of the band. Well last year the talk was intensified with the band's two "farewell" shows and the re-release of this album, It's All Our Blood.
On this album we are treated to re-mastered versions of the Roll With the Punches and The Line is Drawn EP's, with a couple of extras. While most consider A Life Less Plagued to be their definitive release, I bet to differ. While that album is good, there is just something about the rawness of the songs that make up these recordings that energizes me. Cuts like "Fuck Your Politics," "Check Yourself," and "Move Along" totally kill; the guitars shred and the lyrics are pretty damn sweet too. And if you're a straightedge kid, though I am not, I can fully understand why this band was as popular as they were.
The title track from The Line is Drawn 7" is Carry On at their best as they teamed energetic hardcore-punk with these eerily foreshadowing lyrics "You're in no position to look down on me / because we all have problems and we all fuck up / But the effort's for myself / I never did this shit for you / So don't waste your breathââ¬Â¦" Even without the lyrics, this song is ace.
We get a couple of bonus tracks; "Set the Pace" fits in perfectly with the Carry On sound, especially the sonic speed drumming. Oh yeah, then there is "the rap" tagged on to the track "Problem Solved." For all the hype of this bit, it's kind of a lame joke. Guess you had to be there when it was recorded to really "get it."
The bottom-line is that this re-release of It's All Our Blood serves its purpose as a nostalgic reminder of this seminal hardcore outfit. But now that those official goodbyes are over with, we must move on and partake in the world of "ex-Carry On" offshoots, of which there are oh-so-many of them.
