Reviews

When I was a freshman in high school in early 1997 a friend of mine asked me to go to a Food Not Bombs show in Wicker Park in Chicago. It was held in the back of a burrito joint known as the Big Horse. This would be the first time I had ever seen or heard of the Alkaline Trio. The band was still in its early stages - Adriano was still in Tuesday - but there was still something special about this band. Two months later, I saw them open for the Queers at the metro. After that, I heard nothing of them for around a year and a half.
 
Then in my junior year in 1998, a bomb was dropped and almost nine years later I still have not recovered. This bomb was known as Goddamnit, the Trio’s first full-length album released on Asian Man records. After this, it seemed that Chicago had been cast under a spell by Matt Skiba’s infectious stories of love and inebriation. It was in the next year and a half that I would see this band around twenty times, driving around the Midwest to catch one of their unrivaled live shows.
 
That was the beginning of my relationship with the Alkaline Trio and as with any relationship you hit your highs and lows. It started off so good, yet slowly my interest just started to fade. But I always have had a soft spot in my heart for this band that consumed much of my time and my attention so many years ago. So when I was given the Trio’s new b-sides collection, Remains, an old flame was rekindled, in a way.
 
I had given up on them. The Trio had moved out of Chicago, so I was unable to see them play here every other weekend. They signed to a new label and honestly, I thought that their new material was not as raw and powerful as the material they had produced on Asian Man and Johann’s Face records. Maybe I was spited. I, like so many, had become alienated; our hometown boys had become to big for us. But after listening to Remains, I feel that I have made a huge mistake.
 
Remains is a b-sides collection of material the band had released while on Vagrant records. It is a collection of twenty-two songs released on various compilations and ep’s, as well as unreleased tracks. In addition, the record is also accompanied by a DVD, with a behind the scenes documentary, five music videos, and additional bonus features.
 
This compilation is pretty outstanding, considering my love/hate relationship with the band. It has made me want to go back and familiarize myself with the albums I have ignored. It also has made me realize the caliber of the Alkaline Trio; even back in the day the b-sides were as good, if not better than much of the material released on the albums and I would have to say that this collection is not any different.
 
One thing that the Trio has always been great at is choosing songs to cover. On their first b-sides collection, you were able to hear their amazing cover of a seldom-heard Cure b-side, “Exploding Boy,” a song so fitting for them to cover. Keeping in the vein of their dark new wave influence, this record contains an amazing cover of Berlin’s “Metro.” Berlin’s original features an intricate synthesizer riff that Skiba is able to pull off incredibly on his six-string. They also do a cover of the Damned’s “Wait for the Blackout,” a band that was definitely the Trio’s goth-punk predecessor.
 
In addition to the Trio’s ability to play covers, you get their half of a split ep with Hot Water Music that came out on Jade Tree records. This is an awesome set of songs starting with “Queen of Pain.” Also included from this release are the song “While You Were Waiting,” and a cover of Hot Water Music’s “Rooftops.” My favorite part about this collection of songs is the comments the band wrote in the liner notes. The band states how on this ep they knew they had to bring it harder than they had previously because they did not want to disappoint Hot Water. And the Trio definitely did not disappoint.
 
The record also contains their contribution to a split with One Man Army and many b-sides to singles they released in Britain. As a whole, this is a collection of songs that could have been released as a regular release. As much as I may have not wanted to realize it, the Alkaline Trio has progressed way past the gritty emotional punk of Goddamnit. They have developed a sound reminiscent of bands like the Cure and the Damned, but with an energy all their own. I will admit that I have made a mistake and I now need to familiarize myself with the sessions that created this collection of songs.
 
As an album I give this a four out of five stars. The DVD is another story.
 
Since the inception of CD/DVD combo package, I don’t think I have ever received a DVD that was worthy of the record it accompanied. This DVD is no different. On one hand, you get a collection of music videos, which is cool. Music video collections are often amassed into one giant collection that will be sold together at a later date. Here, the Alkaline Trio has been kind enough to give their fans all of the videos they recorded for Vagrant. But what damns this DVD is the tripe they try to call a documentary. Now I was not expecting a documentary along the lines of a Ken Burns or a Martin Scorsese piece, but to call film of the Trio simply name dropping cities on their 2005/2006 tour, along with some candid moments and live footage, is not what I consider a documentary. In addition to the videos and the “documentary,” are some bonus features. These include three live tracks, a radio interview, and the making of the “Burn” video. On a whole the DVD is kind of lame and not really worth my time but it might be worth yours.
 
As an entire package I would have to say that Remains by the Alkaline Trio gets a three out of five stars. As much as I despised the DVD, the quality and passion of their b-sides collection redeems it. Because, honestly, if you were going to purchase this just for the DVD, you’re a fucking moron.