Emo's poster band Dashboard rocks it old school

Jacqui Streety, editor-in-chief

For the last month and half I have found myself absolutely unable to listen to anything but Dashboard Confessional “The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most.” It was released in 2001 and while it seems kind of old, it’s a super album and definitely deserving of attention.

Chris Carrabba, the mastermind of it all, is so amazing. He writes everything and plays guitar and sings. His voice is what makes me melt. I would venture to say that his voice is as beautiful as Chris Cornell’s (who I revere a god).

Every lyric is inundated with motion and even more so once you add in Carrabba’s voice. He’s so passionate. The lyrics are anything but simple and they are pieced together so well that they become a masterpiece. It goes far beyond the lyrical/poetic composition of the lines; it’s more than the lexis pieced together in an intricate rhyme scheme. It’s saying what every person thinks and feels about a relationship gone awry. But this isn’t just break up music –it’s soulful and energetic, refreshing, poetic and beautiful.

My favorite song, “Saints and Sailors,” begins with catchy guitars, immediately followed by Carrabba’s sweet, sweet voice singing of the pain that comes with a broken heart.

Carrabba sings, “You smile like a saint but you curse like a sailor and your eyes say the jokes on me.”

Every song is so wonderfully composed that it becomes difficult to single any one out. If you only began listening to Dashboard at the most recent album, “A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar,” then you need this album, as well because the two sound nothing alike.

Regardless of when you became a fan, “The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most” is definitely an album worth listening to. And if you’re not into emo music because you think you’re “too cool,” then you probably aren’t that cool anyway.

I may not be able to headbang to this but I definitely feel it. And if you decide to check this album out (or any other CD), go buy it—don’t rip the artist off by burning it.