DeKALB | I wasn’t feeling much excitement among fellow Alkaline Trio fans about the upcoming release of the band’s eighth studio album, Damnesia, but the fan girl in me couldn’t resist giving it a listen.

Damnesia consists of fifteen tracks, though only three of them are new. Instead, the album contains a cover of The Violent Femme’s “I Held her in my Arms,” and a dozen reworked Trio tracks. While a dozen recycled songs may not sound too appealing, remember: Trio is celebrating their 15th year as a band, which means there are hundreds of songs from which to choose.

True, the album is mostly recycled material, but Damnesia is recycled done right. Many of these covers are well composed, with “Every Thug Needs a Lady” being a favorite. “Calling All Skeletons” is arguably (much) better than the original off of 2008’s Agony and Irony. But, the new material left less of a good impression.

While I very much enjoyed meeting the grown-up versions of classics like “Nose Over Tail” and “Radio,” the three new tracks – not so much. I think I might like to get to know the young “I Remember a Rooftop” a little better, but that’s as far as my affair with Trio’s new material is going to go for the time being. 

I hear a new sound coming out of the three new tracks on Damnesia – a somewhat silly, wannabe-country sound that doesn’t necessarily come off well. I was hoping that the concept behind Damnesia was to get back to the band’s punk roots and to start creating music more akin to the material that earned the band so many fans in the first place, but I was disappointed to find that doesn’t seem to be the case. However, I do give the band props for having the guts to continue to experiment with its sound. Change is good, right?