Young Livers - Of Misery And Toil

Something about this record screams "No Idea", and I can't quite put my finger on it. Sure enough, they're from Florida (well, at least 3/4 of them), they rock hard, scream, and - dare I say it - well, yes, they are standing on the shoulders of giants, who, for what it's worth, never ever could pull off an album like Of Misery And Toil anymore. But still, there is something underneath all the noise and melody and gruffness that makes Young Livers stand out.

Maybe it's the fact that this record came into my life at the right time. Maybe it's got something to do with a desperate need for someone to tell me that everything will be OK, no matter how hard it seems sometimes. Lines like "We face up to look down. We breathe out just to hear something else." just ring a bell. There is hope. Repeat: there is hope.

Music is just sound, and books are nothing but words, but they serve a deeper purpose. They help us humans to understand the universe. They explain things. They make you feel less alone, and less miserable. And sometimes, music and words touch your soul.

The feeling I get from this record, way beyond the screaming and beyond the realization of "Hey, wait, they didn't have all these hard rock guitar melodies on the first album", is this: there are times when we, as humans, feel completely lost and lonely and desperate, and we think that no one can relate to the pain we feel. It becomes something universal, bigger than life itself, and we become so absorbed with it that we just can't see the light at the end of the tunnel. It is the task of the poet that make us feel less alone, to touch our hearts and minds, to explain things, to make us understand. And fuck yes, drunk punk rockers from Florida can be the true poet that touches your heart and soul every now and then. Young Livers did that to me.

Behind this wall of noise, there is a soothing beauty. Behind all the screaming, you can find stories of desperation and fucking up, of falling down - and, more important than anything else! - of getting the fuck back up again, brushing off the dirt and tears, and asking the universe: "Is that all you have to fucking offer?"

There is hope in failure. There is hope in pain. There is always a light at the end of the tunnel. Always. We only need a little reminder now and then. My own personal reminder sounds fucking amazing and is called Of Misery And Toil.

"It's veiled now in our patience. It's kindled in remorse. Failed, as we have become what we loathe."

www.noidearecords.com