No Use For A Name – Keep Them Confused

Every where you look, No Use For A Name is labeled as something else. Their bio calls them a “punk rock band”, Real Player reads them as “skate punk” and say they have perfected the model of “melodic hardcore”, but really, the most appropriate label to place NUFAN under is none other than the “pop-punk” label. Because that is what they are, and no one can deny that.

They’ve been around since 1987 and have paid their dues only to find out what works best for them as a band, and it shows on their seventh full length album Keep Them Confused. Easily, the one thing that makes No Use For A Name stand out amongst the crowd is their lead singer, Tony Sly. His vocals are so unique, there is no one else out there that sounds like him, which is kind of a good thing because I’ve never been a huge fan of his vocals on record. Although his vocals were amazing and sounded great live when I saw them a few years ago, on record they tend to be a bit too high pitch for my liking. At times, they even become annoying. But oddly enough, after a few listens to the album, his vocals become less obtrusive to the listener and start to sound a bit better in my ears anyway. You become use to them, and soon start to forget the tone of the vocals. But this takes one or two listens before the transformation begins.

Once you get past the vocals, No Use for A Name supplies the same sturdy pop-punk tunes they’ve made in the past. Quick, melodic, fast paced, three chord punk with intelligent lyrics about relationships, fears, death, memories and many more. The first single for the album, For Fiona, is a love song to Sly’s wide, Fiona, that starts off with soft, almost robotic vocals before jumping into the song full force. Its an interesting sound that makes the song stand out in the album while Black Box‘s infectious chorus gets stuck in your head immediately.

Overall, Keep Them Confused isn’t a phenomenal release, it is just a solid pop-punk album with a few good tunes spread throughout it. It’s nothing you haven’t heard before and NUFAN haven’t changed much throughout the years; so if you were happy with what they did in the pass, you’ll still be happy now.