March 4, 2003 - Comeback Kid and Turn It Around

It's a triple release day! Another new band joins my library when Comeback Kid released their debut album "Turn It Around" on March 4, 2003. But who is Comeback Kid? They are a five-piece hardcore punk band from Winnipeg, Manitoba consisting of drummer Kyle Profeta, bassist Cliff Heide, rhythm guitarist Andrew Neufeld, lead guitarist Jeremy Hiebert and lead singer Scott Wade. Comeback Kid are definitely a punk band, with 13 songs combining for a mere 28 minute album, but they can also be pretty heavy. Let's see what they're all about!

The album kicks off with "All In A Year" and we get our first taste of Comeback Kid's style which has lots of shouted backing vocals by Hiebert and Neufeld and Wade yelling the lead vocals. He has a pretty punk-y voice, but I find it pretty monotone and honestly it's not my favourite; it's not awful, but it's certainly not good either. The music is very punk-y indeed with Profeta playing some speedy, typical punk drums and Hiebert and Neufeld both playing some fast, and also pretty typically punk-y guitar. Most of the songs on this album are pretty short, and they all generally follow the same punk-y formula, but of course each song has it's own unique riffs, but they can definitely all blend together. Up next is "Give And Take" and I could describe it the same way as the previous song, and in this way, words don't do proper justice. Track 3 is "Die Tonight" and it's got a slightly slower pace with Hiebert and Neufeld not syncing up and doing a nice job of playing off each other instead. Wade still yells in his monotone voice overtop, but the music is much more variety and interesting on this one than the first two, an early favourite so far. The next track is "Changing Face" and we're back to the speedy punk style again for about a minute, then they nicely start to break things down slowly until they reach a nice heavy breakdown with some pretty cool guitar by Hiebert. Neufeld adds some screaming vocals to the mix as well and not only does he sound pretty heavy and sweet, but I find it makes Wade's voice sound better when they are both singing at the same time. New favourite! Track 5 is "Playing The Part" and it might be the fastest song yet with a typical punk main riff, but they play it at a furious speed! They slow things down a little for the latter half (of another less than two minute song) and the two halves were both pretty good! Up next is "Always" and I'm sure a lot of people would say "All these songs sound the same!", and they kind of do, but when it's a super speedy main riff that they just fire through and a nice slower, heavier finish, I'm not complaining! Track 7 is "Step Ahead" and once again they do a nice combination of speedy punk and breakdown metal. Neufeld adds some more excellent screaming vocals and he and Hiebert both play some cool heavy guitars that means I believe yet another new favourite so far! Keep 'em coming! The next track is "Operative Word" and it's got a slower pace and even a slightly pop-y feel to it with some simpler but still solid guitars. There were no singles off this album, but I feel like if they were popular at the time this one would have been a single. Wade's singing is similar to his typical yelling style in that it's not bad, but not really great either. Track 9 is the shortest song at just over a minute and it's called "Biting Tongue". They speed through one verse, then repeat a pretty bland chorus, and that's that. Up next is "Something Less" and it's got all the hallmarks of another typical Comeback Kid song, once again me repeating the same words just doesn't do it proper justice, it's another solid punk song. Track 11 is "Never Fade" and it also falls into the bucket of typical(ly good) song, with another cool breakdown finish. The next track is "Without A Word" and it's another spitfire song at a minute and fifteen seconds. They somehow burn through several verses in that time, there's some hardcore punk for ya! The last song on the album is "Lorelei" and it is the only song to be over three minutes long, and it's actually five and a half minutes, an eternity for these guys! It's a very loud and typical song for the first 2:20, then the sing appears to be fading out, only for Hiebert to just continue to make that note squeal as Neufeld continues the Rhythm guitar in the background. We hear some quiet voices at one point, but it's mostly just this trippy feedback loop for several minutes until it finally ends over three minutes later.

That is the end of "Turn It Around" and I thought it was a solid debut for Comeback Kid. Scott Wade is definitely not my favourite singer, but I love the heavy punk energy and the speed at which they play with. I look forward to seeing where they go from here!