November 14, 2000 - Conspiracy Of One

Two weeks after my last release and two years since the hit "Americana", The Offspring released their sixth album "Conspiracy Of One" on November 14, 2000. The Offspring's style hasn't changed and after another massive success they're here with another batch of catchy punk-rock songs. Let's dive in!

The album begins with one of the shortest songs in my whole library, the five second "Intro". It's a clip from a Beach Boys concert way back in the 60s and we hear one of them say "when we're ready to sing, we step up to the microphones, and it comes out something like this...". It's a funny little way to kick things off and our first real song is fittingly called "Come Out Swinging". They burst into a pretty fast main riff that is very typical Offspring and Dexter Holland sounds like his usual self as he sings a solid verse overtop the fast music. After a couple fast rounds they slow it down a bit as Greg K. plays some cool bass, Dexter sings a slow new verse overtop until they nicely ramp back up to the main riff to finish things off. A pretty typical(ly solid) Offspring song to get the blood pumping! Track 3 was a massively successful single and it's called "Original Prankster". Noodles plays some pretty catchy guitar to lead the way and Ron Welty plays an uber catchy drum beat and things have a very accessible and chill vibe in this impossible not to like main riff. Holland sings a really catchy verse that perfectly fits the mood and they segue nicely into a chorus that is also uber catchy! The Offspring struck gold with this single and Dexter starts off the next verse with a great "you know it smells like shit, god damn!" They never really stray from the verse and chorus, but why would you when you have such a catchy package? It's an undeniably cool song! The next track is "Want You Bad" and it's got a fairly simple but decent enough punk-rock main riff that is pretty pop-y. The chorus is even more straightforward and this is a perfect example of average Offspring" it's not bad by any means, but it's pretty plain and not too exciting or memorable. Not one of their better songs. Track 5 is another single titled "Million Miles Away" and Noodles plays some catchy lead guitar, Dexter backs him with some solid rhythm guitar as well, and then they sync up for a typical punk-y verse. Dexter sounds solid overtop and the chorus is very repetitive and not that great in my opinion, but thankfully it's not too too long. It seems on this albul once they establish a verse and chorus, they don't tend to really leave these boundaries, which is just a lack of creativity that really hurts the quality of the songs. This was another decent song, but nothing very special. Up next is "Dammit, I Changed Again" and Noodles plays a solid lead guitar riff and it nicely falls away for the beginning of the verse with Greg K. taking the lead with some nice bass and Dexter singing a solid verse. The guitar eventually returns and they move right into a similarly fast-paced chorus that also sounds solid. Not only is this a much better backbone for the verse and chorus, but they do slow it down briefly to give things a nice break, before nicely returning to the fast main riff to close things out. This was a better one! Track 7 is "Living In Chaos" and Noodles plays a super catchy lead guitar riff that is pretty damn smooth and cool. The chorus is also really catchy and solid and I'm shocked this song wasn't a single, I think it's pretty infectious! It's not super complicated or anything, but it's just so catchy! Great guitar Noodles! Dexter's singing is also pretty good and these last couple songs were definitely above average. The next track is "Special Delivery" and it starts with a simple drum beat, Greg K. enters with a cool bass riff, Dexter then comes in to sing the verse, then finally the guitars come in loudly for a pretty simple chorus. They use a sample of the "ooga chucka" part of the famous song "Hooked On a Feeling" in an interesting middle part, then they predictably finish things off. The formula was solid, but things were pretty basic and simple on this one. Track 9 is "One Fine Day" and Dexter tells us about his perfect day, which apparently starts with a tallboy! This has a fast-paced and catchy punk-rock riff and the energy and excitement is there on this song and some others, but it's missing from too many others. Noodles guitar is catchy and solid and Dexter'a lyrics about hanging with your friends, watching sports and drinking is definitely relatable stuff! Up next is "All Along" and it's only a minute and a half long, so they dive right into another solid punk-y main riff. It's in a very similar vein to their other shorter songs as they fire through a few fast-paced and solid rounds, and then it's over. It was solid, but a solo or something could've really jazzed it up. Track 11 is "Denial, Revisited" and Noodles leads a very slow main riff with some solid light guitar but i' not a fan of Dexter's sappy singing on this one. The guitar picks up a bit in the chorus and so does Dexter's singing, but it's all still very pop-y. This was also somehow not a single, despite checking all the boxes. It's decent, but it's just not what I want from The Offspring at all. It's very not-punk of them! The next track is "Vultures" and it too has a slower pace, (though not as sappy thankfully) led by a decent guitar riff by Noodles. It's a pretty basic and bland verse and the chorus is louder and better for sure, but this is another lesser song for sure. Noodles has a perfect chance to solo and spice things up, but he plays such a simple riff and it's just... lacking. The final song on the album is the title track "Conspiracy Of One" and it's a much better, more classic Offspring style with some fast and catchy guitars and a nice verse by Dexter. The chorus is catchy too and this is definitely a good way to wrap up the album. The song is just over two minutes, but it's solid the whole way through.

That is the end of "Conspiracy Of One" and I thought it was a mixed bag of an album. It certainly had some cool songs, the ones that stayed in the mode classic Offspring vibe, but there were a lot of lesser songs as well which were not up to Offspring standards in my opinion. I think it's still better than their self-titled debut, but the fact that I don't think it surpasses "Ignition" shows what a drop-off this is from recent, really good Offspring. It's also the last full album I have by The Offspring in my library as it continues to go downhill from here. They will return though, it was a pretty good run throughout the 90s!