Reviews

Secret Weapon

MxPx

Released: Jul 17, 2007
Label: Tooth & Nail Records
Reviewed by: William Jones
5 comments

Story. A Washington-state based punk band gets noticed and signed by an indie label. Band releases three quality albums and signs to a bigger label, which sort of turns into a major. Band releases one great album that actually goes gold a few years later, followed by a couple of mediocre efforts, but fans still follow the band because they put on a hell of a live show that reminds said fans of high school or said fans are still actually in high school. Band releases an album on another indie and it receives critical acclaim, but mostly because it's better than the previous two. Band then goes back to original label, thirteen years after its first release, and puts out what is arguably its best album to date.

The band is MXPX, and the album is Secret Weapon. (I know, I know. It would have been a much more suspenseful intro if it wasn't already under the heading of "Review: MXPX - Secret Weapon," but what can I do). Whether it actually has anything to do with the label or not, MXPX's return to Tooth & Nail has produced the best album of their career. And yes, plenty of old fans will make valid arguments for the greatness of classics like Life in General, Teenage Politics, and Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo, but after thirteen years, MXPX has done something somewhere between coming full-circle and starting entirely from scratch...and it's hard to find even the slightest fault in Secret Weapon.

The band instantly sounds more aggressive than they have in years on the title track, and then top that intensity with the second, "Shut it Down," which opens with a shout of "This is a public service announcement...with guitar!!!" There's something so cheesy and yet so cool about it all in the same instant.

And it's not all about speed and aggression, either. MXPX proves just as impressive on slower tracks like "Top of the Charts." This track is followed by "Punk Rawk Celebrity," both of which examine the irony of how trendy the punk scene has become and the fame that many punk rockers have achieved. And while the music itself is often aggressive, the lyrics are mostly positive and easily some of the best the band has written.

The songwriting is different, but maintains the MXPX signature while doing something entirely different than what the band has done for the last thirteen years, and somehow, it works perfectly. MXPX fans will still dig it, but it should also appeal to a much wider punk audience that may have written off MXPX as that high school band long ago.

Mike Herrera spent a bit of last year struggling with his voice, needing former Mest vocalist Tony Lavato to fill in on tour. Whatever the issue was, there are no traces of it on Secret Weapon. Herrera delivers a strong vocal performance, and guitarist Tom Wisniewski rocks a lot of killer solos. And, of course, Yuri continues to be awesome.

Secret Weapon can't receive enough praise. It's not just a good MXPX album. It's a great MXPX album and simply one of the best punk albums you'll hear this year. It marks a new peak in the long career of some great punks from Bremerton, Wash. Secret Weapon is a reason to be truly excited about MXPX once again, whether you're fifteen or thirty.