Goldfinger
Open Your Eyes

I remember well the summer of 2005. A monthly job at Mirabilandia. A bunch of girls and friends around and the carefree spirit of being 19. I decided to spend a relaxing summer embracing indifference and living day by day. Hanging out, hanging out, and more hanging out.

It was a high school friend who handed me this album. "Open your eyes." An unoriginal title that I dismissed back then, in a mood for nonconformity. I stumbled upon it later while I was searching for another CD.

Dusted and inserted into the car player, the CD turned out to be a pleasant surprise. It might have been the particularly happy moment I was experiencing, the absence of distant academic and existential thoughts, but I found it light, vibrant, and direct. It opens well with Going Home, a fairly robust melodic hardcore which, however, gives way to a second track that is really disappointing (Spokesman) that winks a bit too much at MTV while demonizing it in the lyrics. The listening continues at a brisk pace with some ballads with purely punk DNA like January and It's your life and a few semi-copies of Blink182 & Co. (who said Decision?) with slight "experiments" (Woodchuck, Liar). The best song on the album is definitely the title track, even though it is quite standardized, like the rest, and tied to the more classic Californian punk.

An album not without flaws like the "already heard" which, however, never turns into monotony, some not too successful passages, and not outstanding technique. If taken in the right perspective, these flaws are not felt and indeed the stylistic non-uniformity of the songs and the superficiality of the music make it a nice album with strong lyrics that sometimes skim (Radio), and immerse in others (Dad and It's your life), purely adolescent themes. Of course, I would like to reiterate that those looking for a serious album should immediately flee to other bands, as well as other genres, but those who listen to it in a "summer" spirit can appreciate it and let themselves be engaged.

A summer work, optimistic and carefree which, alongside Less Than Jake, Deftones, and Rage Against The Machine (as well as Audioslave), can create one of the most beautiful summers ever spent. At least for me. At least for now.

Enjoy.

Track list:

1. "Going Home" - 1:36
2. "Spokesman" (featuring Bert McCracken) - 2:33
3. "Open Your Eyes" (featuring Bert McCracken) - 2:47
4. "Decision" - 2:51
5. "Dad" - 3:00
6. "Tell Me" - 2:14
7. "Liar" - 0:20
8. "January" (featuring Benji Madden) - 3:42
9. "Happy" - 2:42
10. "Woodchuck" (featuring Bert McCracken) - 0:51
11. "It's Your Life" - 2:24
12. "Spank Bank" - 1:20
13. "Youth" - 2:29
14. "Radio" - 3:24
15. "FTN" (Fuck Ted Nugent) - 2:01
16. "Prank Calls" (hidden track) - 2:14
17. "Wayne Gretzky" (hidden track) - 1:42

European Bonus Tracks

1. "The Upper Hand"
2. "Spokesman (Germish Version)"