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Rating: Exactly 4 years have passed since the last successful release of the Madden twins' group; it was "The Young And The Hopeless," which brought them to the forefront thanks to their more than catchy pop punk that was so popular at the time, and indeed singles like "Lifestyle Of The Rich And Famous" and "Girls And Boys" were heard repeatedly on the radio, accompanied on MTV by the respective videos. And as is customary, it is difficult to repeat success, especially for a band following this musical genre, the risk of releasing a clone album of the previous one is very high. So what do Good Charlotte do? They produce an album where they almost completely abandon childlike choruses and lyrics from a juvenile band to venture into something darker; overall the album can be defined as much more rock than its predecessor, and there are many ballads, some experiments, (like the piano in the song "The Truth")... In short, something innovative for them. For instance, in the album's lead single, the seventh track "Predictable," the American quintet offers sounds very close to emo, and more specifically to the emo-rock fringe: in any case, a listenable piece but very far from the singles of a few years ago of the Maryland band.
After an instrumental intro, it starts with a classic pop punk piece from which the album takes its title, a typical cheerful and carefree song but with a slightly more melodic vein; the following "Walk Away (Maybe)" appears more in line with current times, being a track leaning towards emo. We arrive at number five "I Just Wanna Live", perhaps the best track on the album, being a piece that may remind one of the best boy-bands on the MTV scene. Melody and even a touch of melancholy can be found in tracks like "Ghost Of You" and "Secrets", and like in every rock-leaning album, there can't be a missing ballad suitable for evoking loving or sad memories: "The Truth" is ideal for this. After this veil of sweet melodies, one can find slightly more cheerful-sounding tracks like "The World Is Black", where there's use of a xylophone or something similar, but where the melody still prevails. Some sharper and more decisive guitar riffs are hard to find; one has to settle for hearing them in the last tracks, especially in "In This World".
In short, it is pointless to deny that this Madden brothers and co.'s album might leave previous fans stunned, in a negative sense, by venturing down a new path whose characteristics can be noticed in many aspects: from the darker and more mysterious cover, from the album title and lyrics, more reflective, personal, and less carefree. I would say to appreciate this attempt at improvement, successful in some parts, such as some experiments with the use of new sounds, in others not so much: for instance, in my opinion, there are too many tracks for an album of this type, perhaps the ideal would have been to include about ten or so. Recently it's not the first time a pop punk band ventures with new ideas (see Blink 182), it remains to be seen how Good Charlotte intends to proceed. It will undoubtedly be seen more than from the reviews, positive or negative, from the sales.
It's worth noting that there are two versions of this album: the "Death" version, which has as a bonus track and fifteenth track the song "Meet My Maker", and the "Life" version, which, apart from having a lighter colored cover, has as a bonus track "Falling Away".
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
02 The Chronicles of Life and Death (03:04)
You come in cold
You're covered in blood
They're all so happy you've arrived
The doctor cuts your cord
He hands you to your mom
She sets you free into this life
And where do you go with no destination, no map to guide you
Wouldn't you know that it doesn't matter, we all end up the same
These are the chronicles of life and death and everything between
These are the stories of our lives, as fictional as they may seem
You come in this world, and you go out just the same
Today could be the best day of your life
And money talks in this world, that's what idiots will say
But you'll find out that this world is just an idiot's parade
Before you go
You've got some questions
And you want answers
But now you're old, cold, covered in blood
Right back to where you started from
These are the chronicles of life and death and everything between
These are the stories of our lives, as fictional as they may seem
You come in this world, and you go out just the same
Today could be the worst day of your life
But these are the chronicles of life and death and everything between
These are the stories of our lives, as fictional as they may seem
You come in this world, and you go out just the same
Today could be the best day of
Today could be the worst day of
Today could be the last day of your life
It's your life
Your life
04 S.O.S. (03:42)
Is anybody listening?
Can you hear me when I call?
I'm shooting signals in the air,
'Cause I need somebody's help
I can't make it on my own,
So I'm giving up myself
Is anybody listening, listening?
I've been stranded here and I'm miles away
Making signals and hoping they save me
I lock myself inside these walls
'Cause out there I'm always wrong
I don't think I'm gonna make it
So while I'm sitting here on the eve of my defeat
I write this letter and hope it saves me
[chorus:]
Is anybody listening?
Can you hear me when I call?
I'm shooting signals in the air
'Cause I need somebody's help
I can't make it on my own
So I'm giving up myself
Is anybody listening, listening?
I'm stuck in my own head and I'm oceans away
Would anybody notice if I chose to stay?
I'll send an S.O.S. tonight
And wonder if I will survive
How in the hell did I get so far away this time?
So now I'm sitting here
The time of my departure's near
I say a prayer please, someone save me
[chorus]
I'm lost here
I can't make it on my own
I don't wanna die alone
I'm so scared
Drowning now
Reaching out
Holding on to everything I know
Crying out
Dying now
Need some help
Is anybody listening?
Can you hear me when I call?
Shooting signals in the air
I need somebody's help
I can't make it on my own
I'm giving up myself
Is anybody listening?
06 Ghost of You (04:51)
And I will wait until the end
When the pendulum will swing back to the darker side of our hearts bleeding
I will save this empty space next to me like it's a grave
Where I lay a place for us to sleep eternally together
I have been searching for traces of what we were
A ghost of you is all that I have left
It's all that I have left of you to hold
I wake in the night to find there's no one there but me
And nothing left of what we were at all
So here I am pacing around this house again
With pictures of us living on these walls
I see my breath in the cold of the air that I breathe and I'm wondering
I'm wondering if it's you that I feel
If it's you that I feel here haunting me forever
I have been searching for traces of what we were
A ghost of you is all that I have left
It's all that I have left of you to hold
I wake in the night to find there's no one there but me
And nothing left of what we were at all
And I'm not looking for anything but us
Anything but what we were
And I'm not asking for painted memories
I only want to know you're here
A ghost of you is all that I have left
It's all that I have left of you to hold
I wake in the night to find there's no one there but me
And nothing left of what we were at all x2
07 Predictable (03:11)
Something isn't right
I can feel it again, feel it again
This isn't the first time
That you left me waiting
Sad excuses and false hope highs
I saw this coming still I don't know why
I let you in
I knew it all along
your so predictable
I knew something would go wrong (something's always wrong)
So you don't have to call
Or say anything at all
you're so predictable (so predictable)
So take your empty words, your broken promises
And all the time you stole cause I am done with this
I can give it away, give it away
I'm doing everything I should've
And now I'm making a change
I'm living the day
I'm giving back what you gave me
I don't need anything
I knew it all along
your so predictable
I knew something would go wrong (something's always wrong)
So you don't have to call
Or say anything at all
you're So predictable (so predictable)
everywhere I go
Everyone I meet
Every time I try to fall in love
They all want to know why I'm so broken
Why am I so cold
Why I'm so hard inside
Why am I scared
What am I afraid of
I don't even know
This story's never had an end
I've been waiting
I've been searching
I've been hoping
I've been dreaming you would come back
But I know the ending of this story...
You're never coming back
Never..never..never..never.....[echo].....
I knew it all along
you're so predictable
I knew something would go wrong (something's always wrong)
So you don't have to call
Or say anything at all
you're so predictable (so predictable)
Everywhere I go for the rest of my life (so predictable)
Everyone I love
Everyone I care about
They're all gonna wanna know what's wrong with me (so predictable)
And I know what it is
I'm ending this right now... [echo]
08 Secrets (03:54)
In the dark
In the darkness you will find
Dirty little secrets we all hide
Cause we all have a darker side
A place we keep where no one else will find
Cause everybody wants to hide their secrets away
Nobody wants to stand up to the pain
But I will...
Stand up to the pain
Wake up and fight again
If you could
Dance with me through this rain
We will fight
We'll fight again
Fight again
In the back
In the closets of your mind
That's where skeletons and dirty secrets hide
And I'll rip out my insides
And leave them on display for you tonight
Cause everybody wants to hide their secrets away
Nobody wants to stand up to the pain
But I will...
Stand up to the pain
Wake up and fight again
If you could
Dance with me through this rain
We will fight
We'll fight again
Fight again
(Fight again)
All my life I hide my secrets away
In the dark
In the dark
In the dark
We all try to hide our secrets away
In the dark
In the dark
In the dark
Stand up to the pain
Wake up and fight again
If you could
Dance with me through this rain
We will fight
We'll fight again
Fight again
Fight again
Cause everybody wants to hide their secrets away
And that's okay
Nobody wants to stand up to the pain
And fight again
09 The Truth (03:56)
So here we are
We are alone
There’s weight on your mind
I wanna know
The truth, if this is how you feel
Say it to me
If this was ever real
I want the truth from you
Give me the truth, even if it hurts me
I want the truth from you
Give me the truth, even if it hurts me
I want the truth
So this is you
You're talking to me
You found a million ways to let me down
So I'm not hurt when you're not around
I was blind
But now I see
This is how you feel
Just say it to me
If this was ever real
I want the truth from you
Give me the truth, even if it hurts me
I want the truth from you
Give me the truth, even if it hurts me
I know that this will break me
I know that this might make me cry
You gotta say what’s on your mind, on your mind
I know that this will hurt me
and break my heart and soul inside
But I don’t wanna live this lie
I want the truth from you
Give me the truth, even if it hurts me
I want the truth from you
Give me the truth, even if it hurts
I don’t care no more, no
Just give me the truth, give me the truth
Cause I don’t care no more
Give me the truth
Cause I don’t care no more, no
Just give me the truth
Give me the truth[4x]
Cause I don’t care no more, no
10 The World Is Black (03:06)
Turn on channel seven at a quarter to eight
You see the same damn thing
It's just a different day
And no one really knows why this is happening
But it's happening
And everywhere you go it's just a different place
You get the same dark feeling
See the same sad faces
No one really cares that this is happening
We come into this world
We are all the same
And in that moment there's no one to blame
But the world is black
And hearts are cold
And there's no hope
That's what we're told
And we can't go back
It won't be the same
Forever changed
By the things we've say , say
Living in this place
It's always been this way
There's no one doing nothing
So there's nothing changed
And I can't live when this world
Just keeps dying
It's dying
People always tell me, this is part of the plan
That God's got everybody in his hands
But I can only pray that God is listening
Is he listening?
But living in this world
Growing colder everyday
Nothing can stay perfect
Now I say
but The world is black
And hearts are cold
And there's no hope
That's what we're told
And we can't go back
It won't be the same
Forever change
By the things we've say (say,say)
We come into this world
And we are all the same
And in that moment there's no one to blame
But we're living in this world
Growing colder everyday
Nothing can stay perfect
Now I say
The world is black
And hearts are cold
And there's no hope
That's what we're told
And we can't go back
It won't be the same
Forever change
By the things we've say (say, say)
Turn on channel seven at a quarter to eight
You see the same damn thing it's just a different day
And no one really knows why this is happening.....
11 Mountain (04:34)
Whoa
All these dreams and all these plans
I built them all with these two hands
Everything, I’ve realized my dreams
The city lights shine down and they blind me sometimes
But through it all
I was lost but I found my way
So tell me what you want
Cause I would give you anything
Tell me what you need and I’ll go get it
I’d give up all these dreams
To have you in my arms right now
I’d give up everything and I’d forget it
I wasn't on a mountain
When it came to me
All my life’s been wasted
Chasing shallow dreams
So here we are
Let me lift you up and show you this world over me
And all these things
What I've gained
And what I've seen
It can’t compare
To the love that you could give to me
So tell me what you want
Cause I would give you anything
Tell me what you need and I’ll go get it
I’d give up all these dreams
To have you in my arms right now
I’d give up everything and I’d forget it
I wasn't on a mountain
When it came to me
All my life’s been wasted
Chasing shallow dreams
Years go by and nothing’s slowing down the time
Years go by and then they’re wasted
All this time
I thought that I gained everything
If you’re not mine, I’m so empty
I wasn't on a mountain
When it came, when it came to me
That all my life’s been wasted
Chasing shallow dreams
So please come back to me
I'm right here waiting
So please come back to me now
12 We Believe (03:52)
There’s a woman crying out tonight
Her world has changed
She asks God why
Her only son has died
And now her daughter cries
She can’t sleep at night
Downtown another day for all the suits and ties
Another war to fight
There’s no regard for life
How do they sleep at night
How can we make things right
Just wanna make this right
We believe(x6)
In this love
We are all the same
Human in all our ways and all our pain
(So let it be)
There’s a love that could fall down like rain
(Let us see)
Let forgiveness wash away the pain
(What we need)
And no one really knows what they are searching for
(We believe)
This world is crying for so much more
We believe(x6)
In this love
We believe(x5)
In this love
So this world is too much for you to take
Just let him down and follow me
I’ll be everything you need
In every way
We believe(x6)
In this love
In this love
We believe
In this love
We believe
In this love
We believe
In this love
13 It Wasn't Enough (03:24)
It wasn’t enough
It wasn’t enough
It wasn’t enough
I would try to believe
In the things I cannot see
But my faith is shaken now
Like it’s never been before
When I call and you don’t come
I don’t know what I should do
Should I call?
Should I even count on you?
I’ve given all I can
It wasn’t enough
To keep you in my hands
Should I give up?
I try to understand
Was it ever enough?
I don’t understand
So here I am once again
With my back against the wall
Afraid to show you
Afraid to tell you
That I don’t know you like I did
I’ve never been so alone
I’ve never felt so insecure
And now I don’t know where I’m going
In my life I’m not so sure
I’ve given all I can
It wasn’t enough
To keep you in my hands
Should I give up?
I try to understand
Was it ever enough?
I don’t understand
Giving up tonight
I won't let go, won’t let go of you
Giving up tonight
I wanna show you, wanna show you
Giving up tonight
I won't let go, won’t let go of you
Giving up tonight
Am I giving up, giving up?
I don’t wanna give this up, I won't
I’ve given all I can
It wasn’t enough
To keep you in my hands
Should I give up?
I try to understand
Was it ever enough?
I don’t understand
Everything you want from me
I've fought so hard for everything
Everything you want from me
I've tried so hard, could never be
Anything you want from me
Anything you want from me
Anything you want from me
I gave it all
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Other reviews
By Antonino91
Some consider them punk, and those who do clearly don’t understand a damn thing about music.
GOOD CHARLOTTE FUCK YOU!!!!!!!! What a pain these artists thrown together just to make a quick buck...
By ilmio
The fifteen tracks we find on the new CD of the heavily made-up band have NOTHING TO DO with rock... with punk...!
A point in favor, however, for the lyrics. The songs aren’t great, in fact, some are awful... but the lyrics are not bad at all.
By Cate_music_woman
With a sound that oscillates between dark atmospheres and reaching a pop dimension, 'The Chronicles Of Life And Death' has settled into the Italian charts.
A good album that marks the establishment of the band even in Italy but perhaps delves too much into the commercial area that is very familiar to the Italian music scene.
