''The Upsides'' is the second
studio album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
by American
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
band
The Wonder Years, released through No Sleep Records and Run For Cover Records on January 26, 2010. The album was recorded with producer
Vince Ratti
Zolof the Rock & Roll Destroyer (often referred to as simply Zolof) is an American pop rock band that originated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania through core members Vince Ratti and Rachel Minton alongside Anthony Green. Their music, defined by th ...
at Skylight Studios in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania. After being signed by Hopeless Records, ''The Upsides'' was later reissued in a deluxe edition featuring four new songs.
Concept and themes
''The Upsides'' is a part of a trilogy (along with ''
Suburbia I've Given You All and Now I'm Nothing''
011
The following is a list of different international call prefixes that need to be dialled when placing an international telephone call from different countries.
Countries by international prefix
Countries using optional carrier selection cod ...
and ''
The Greatest Generation''
013
013 is a music venue in Tilburg, the Netherlands. The venue opened in 1998 and replaced the ''Noorderligt'', the ''Bat Cave'' and the ''MuziekKantenWinkel''. 013 is the largest popular music venue in the southern Netherlands.
There are two concer ...
that dealt with vocalist Dan Campbell's struggles of being scared, loneliness and feeling lost.
[Biddulph 2015, p. 43]
As vocalist and lyricist Dan "Soupy" Campbell explained on the album's vinyl release, ''The Upsides'' is about fighting back. He began writing the album on early morning bike rides, compiling lines in a notebook for an album that was intended to be about how he had given up. Although it seemed the members of the band had been beaten into misery in their early 20s, Campbell, after riding past a
fountain at "Logan Circle" and seeing it had been switched on, realized it wasn't right for him to feel defeated at 23. After a month of writing with the band living in his home, they emerged with a newly adopted "we're not sad anymore" philosophy.
Whilst the lyrics have been referred to as "more personal than ever," the band didn't shy away from the humor on their previous releases, with topics about
sexting (referring to a member of
I Call Fives
I Call Fives is a pop punk band from Washington Township, New Jersey. Since their formation in 2006, the band had released 4 EP's and 1 self-titled full length in July 2012 through Pure Noise Records. The band was previously signed to No Sleep Rec ...
), cock-blocking, and fist pumping. The lyrics also venture into different themes in each song, from the loneliness of tour life ("Everything I Own Fits in this Backpack"), to social awkwardness ("This Party Sucks") and persevering through bad times ("Washington Square Park").
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
's review said ''The Upsides'' has a
concept album
A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
-like feel and is filled with "post-college angst, busted hearts, big questions, hope, anger, humor, and life", adding that the songs fit together like an intricate puzzle, flowing like it was an entire diary's worth of observations, feelings and events.
Campbell said "when the record came out, I was not in the best spot." He had broken up with his girlfriend of two years but still felt "the prevailing theme kind of worked because while I was kind of down at the moment; it was a different down than I had been before. Like in the past, I’ve been depressed, and just kind of been complacent, and okay with it, but this was a different sad. This was a sad where I was mourning what I didn’t have anymore, with the girl I was dating and a couple
fother things, but it wasn’t hopeless. I knew things were going to get better, and it was just a matter of waiting it out." They later recorded bonus tracks for ''The Upsides'', and one of the songs was about the situation he found himself in upon the album's release.
Release and promotion
On November 11, 2009, ''The Upsides'' was announced for release in two months' time; alongside this, the track listing was posted online. To close out the year, the band played three Northeast holiday shows. On December 17, 2009, "Melrose Diner" was posted on the band's
Myspace profile. ''The Upsides'' was released on January 26, 2010; to promote it, the band played a handful of release shows across the country. ''The Upsides'' sold 1,845 units in its first week, charting at number nine on the ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
Top Heatseekers
Top Heatseekers are "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new an ...
and 42 on the
Top Independent Albums charts.
After a US tour with
Therefore I Am
Therefore I Am was an American post-hardcore band formed in Boston in May 2004. After recording two independent extended plays, they signed to Epitaph Records in 2005 and later to Equal Vision Records in 2008, on which they recorded one full-len ...
and
Man Overboard, the Wonder Years went on an East Coast US tour with
Crime in Stereo. Following a short tour with
Such Gold
Such Gold is an American punk rock band from Rochester, New York, United States, currently consisting of Ben Kotin on guitar and vocals, Nate Derby on guitar, Jon Markson on bass and vocals and Matt Covey on drums.
History
Such Gold formed off ...
and
We Are the Union
We Are the Union is an American ska punk band from Ann Arbor, Michigan formed in 2005. The band is now based out of Michigan, California and Florida. The band has had numerous lineup changes since its inception, with vocalist/guitarist Reade Wolc ...
, the band supported
Set Your Goals on their cross-country US tour through to May 2010. Following the success of the album's release, The Wonder Years announced in May 2010 they signed with
Hopeless Records
Hopeless Records is an American independent record label in Van Nuys, California.
History
Hopeless Records was founded in 1993 by Louis Posen. The label's artists are generally considered to fall under the genres of punk rock, pop punk, post-ha ...
. Between June and August 2010, the band went on a US tour supporting
Streetlight Manifesto. Following this, the band supported
New Found Glory
New Found Glory (formerly A New Found Glory) is an American rock band from Coral Springs, Florida, formed in 1997. The band currently consists of Jordan Pundik (lead vocals), Ian Grushka (bass guitar), Chad Gilbert (lead guitar, backing vocal ...
on their US tour, prior to an Australian tour in September 2010 with
Tonight Alive
Tonight Alive are an Australian Rock music, rock band from Sydney. As of 2018, the band consists of lead vocalist Jenna McDougall, guitarist Jake Hardy, bassist Cameron Adler, and drummer Matty Best.
Formed in 2008 by Hardy, Adler and Whakaio ...
.
A deluxe edition of ''The Upsides'' was released through Hopeless Records. It included four extra tracks, two of which had not been heard before. "I Was Scared and I'm Sorry" was written about a break-up and everything changing in Campbell's life. "We Won't Bury You" was written for a friend of the band who was in rehab and later died of an overdose before hearing the song. The first of the reworked songs was a take on "Dynamite Shovel"; "Recorded live in one room with a bunch of mics everywhere, this finds us stomping and clapping and yelling and laughing". The final track is a completely reworked "slowed down, piano-based version" of the song "Logan Circle," said to be "completely reminiscent of the song it actually is, but it's different lyrics (and a) different structure".
In October 2015, the band announced another reissue of the album, due for release on December 18. This time it features new artwork and all the bonus tracks made available with the previous deluxe edition of the album, in addition to "Leavenhouse. 11:30."
Reception
Allmusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
said the "bleeding humanity" of the band and how Campbell "sounds like a regular guy, not a rock & roll frontman" help ''The Upsides'' bring "a time-honored sound" and "make it sound fresh and exciting by doing it seriously right". Reviewer Tim Sendra complimented the dueling riffs of guitarists Matt Brasch and Casey Cavaliere, Mike Kennedy's drum work and how Nick Steinborn adds the occasional unobtrusive keyboard part: "They simply take the best of each element of their conglomerated sound (the hookiness of pop, the heart-spilling fever of emo, the rambling energy of punk) and let it rip."
The album was included at number 24 on ''Rock Sound''s "The 51 Most Essential Pop Punk Albums of All Time" list.
[Bird, ed. 2014, p. 71]
Track listing
Personnel
;The Wonder Years
* Dan "Soupy" Campbell — vocals, ukulele
* Matt Brasch — rhythm guitar, vocals
* Josh Martin — bass, vocals
* Casey Cavaliere — lead guitar, vocals
* Michael Kennedy — drums
* Nick Steinborn — keys, guitar, vocals
*Bill Henderson — mastering
*Jake Sulzer — mastering(acoustic tracks)
*Mitchell Wojcik — photography
*Guest vocals on "Hey Thanks" —
Rachel Minton
Rachel Minton (born 1980) is lead vocalist and keyboardist for the Independent music/pop rock/power pop band Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer.
She has provided guest vocals on many other bands' works, including Circa Survive's song "Suitcase", ...
(
Zolof The Rock & Roll Destroyer)
*Guest trombone on "Hey Thanks" — Matt Belanger (
We Are The Union
We Are the Union is an American ska punk band from Ann Arbor, Michigan formed in 2005. The band is now based out of Michigan, California and Florida. The band has had numerous lineup changes since its inception, with vocalist/guitarist Reade Wolc ...
)
*Guest vocals on "All My Friends Are in Bar Bands" — Shane Henderson (
Valencia
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...
), Dave Mackinder (
Fireworks
Fireworks are a class of Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a l ...
), Matty Arsenault (
A Loss For Words), Jamie Rhoden (
Title Fight), Nik Bruzzese (
Man Overboard), Charlie Saxton and Nick O'Neill (Sink Or Swim)
Chart performance
References
; Citations
;Sources
*
*
External links
''The Upsides''at
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
(streamed copy where licensed)
album information from No Sleep Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Upsides, The
2010 albums
The Wonder Years (band) albums
No Sleep Records albums