Motion City Soundtrack : My Dinosaur Life :: Review

Poppy punk took a nosedive when Weezer started to suck about the time that “The Green Album” arrived.  Fans of the genre can rejoice now that Motion City Soundtrack has picked up the reins for the genre under the guiding hand of producer Mark Hoppus.  Smart lyrics, driving melodies and catchy hooks fill Motion City Soundtrack’s fourth album “My Dinosaur Life” and first for Columbia.

“My Dinosaur Life” captures a year in the life of singer Justin Pierre that he had to endure to bring you such power pop bliss.  Whereas Pierre still sings about relationships both failed and current, his sense of humor shines through in the lyrics of “Worker Bee,” and “A Lifeless Ordinary.”  Pierre even rails against his critics on the scorching, “@!#?@!” which sounds more full of life than the majority of what’s played on FM radio.  Unlike Weezer, Motion City Soundtrack proves that while growing up is never fun, the tunes that you carry with you should be.

Rating:

This post was submitted by greg.

Motion City Soundtrack Announce More Shows With Weezer in Early 2010!

The boys from Minneapolis will start off the New Year by joining back up with Weezer for some additional dates together – this time on the West Coast.  These dates lead up to the release of the MCS’s major label debut, My Dinosaur Life, out January 19^th on Columbia Records!

Confirmed tour dates are listed below and don’t forget about the the MCS headlining tour in January and February.

Dec.     1st            Aragon Ballroom                                            Chicago, IL*

3rd            Eagles Ballroom                                             Milwaukee, WI*

7th            Agganis Arena                                                Boston, MA*

9th            Patriot Center @ George Mason                    Fairfax, VA*

10th          Susquehanna Bank Center                             Camden, NJ*

18th          Lincoln Hall (MCS Headline/IATM                 Chicago, IL (SOLD OUT)

19th          Lincoln Hall (MCS Headline/CCTM)               Chicago, IL (SOLD OUT)

20th          Lincoln Hall (MCS Headline/EIIKM)                Chicago, IL (SOLD OUT)

Jan.      9th            Bill Graham Civic Auditorium                         San Francisco, CA*

11th           Bren Event Center                                          Irvine, CA*

13th           Rimac                                                             La Jolla, CA*

15th           Dodge Theater                                               Pheonix, AZ*

19th           Fillmore                                                         Denver, CO*

23rd           First Avenue                                                   Minneapolis, MN**

25th           The Intersection                                            Grand Rapids, MI**

26th           Bogarts                                                          Cincinnati, OH**

27th           House of Blues                                              Cleveland, OH**

29th           Clutch Cargo’s                                                Pontiac, MI**

31st           Mr. Small’s                                                     Pittsburgh, PA**

Feb.     1st             Recher Theater                                               Towson, MD**

3rd             Fillmore at Irving Plaza                                   New York, NY**

4th             Webster Theater                                             Hartford, CT**

5th             Crocodile Rock                                                Allentown, PA**

6th             Tremont Hall *NOTE VENUE CHANGE*         Charlotte, NC**

8th              Masquerade                                                   Atlanta, GA**

10th            The Door                                                          Dallas, TX**

11th            Emo’s                                                               Austin, TX**

*w/ Weezer

**MCSHeadlining Tour

This post was submitted by greg.

Motion City Soundtrack’s video for “Disappear” Premieres Today on MySpace!

CLICK HERE TO WATCH:

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=100754491

Motion City Soundtrack – Justin Pierre, Josh Cain, Matt Taylor, Tony Thaxton and Jesse Johnson – are gearing up for their major label debut – My Dinosaur Life – due out January 19^th on Columbia Records.  In anticipation of the new album, the band released their first new song “Disappear” from the album on October 20^th and today they are premiering the video for “Disappear” on MySpace!

In addition, if you haven’t already heard about the “Dino Trail” yet go to www.mydinosaurlife.com and follow the one and only Justin Pierre as he continues his adventures across the US – busking, hanging with fans, playing in dorm rooms, visiting radio stations, jamming with bands, etc.  There are some great photos and video clips, so once you’ve checked out the new music video – check out the Dino Trail clips!

And if you want to see the band live, catch them in December when they join up with Weezer for a handful of dates or check them out on one of the 2010 headlining dates just announced earlier this week!

This post was submitted by greg.

Motion City Soundtrack Reveal Details of My Dinosaur Life: Official Release Date January 19th

New York, NY – Motion City Soundtrack have revealed the details of their major label debut – My Dinosaur Life – through a post on their web site www.motioncitysoundtrack.com today.  It’s official, the album – produced by Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus and mixed by the legendary Andy Wallace (Nirvana, Sonic Youth, Kaiser Chiefs) – will be released on January 19^th, 2010 on Columbia Records.  In addition, they have released the final track listing for the new album (see below) and revealed the incredible cover art by renowned collectible toy artist Joe Ledbetter (www.joeledbetter.com) – also responsible for the entire album art.

My Dinosaur Life is the exciting next chapter for Motion City Soundtrack.  The band – Justin Pierre, Joshua Cain, Matt Taylor, Tony Thaxton, and Jesse Johnson – first jumped onto the scene with their 2002 debut I Am the Movie (Epitaph).  They followed this up with 2005’s Commit This to Memory (Epitaph).  Also produced by Mark Hoppus, Commit This to Memory debuted at #72 on the Billboard 200 and has gone on to sell more than 300,000 copies.  It garnered raves from Spin, Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly, and Blender among others and found Motion City Soundtrack making their late night TV debut on Late Night with Conan O’Brien.  In 2007, MCS released Even If It Kills Me (Epitaph), a markedly poppier endeavor that found them working with producers Adam Schlesinger, Eli Janney and Ric Ocasek.  This third release debuted at #16 on the Billboard 200 and once again, the critics weighed in favorably – Alternative Press featured them on the cover of their “Most Anticipated” issue, the New York Times claimed “they made an album that sounds like one long sugar rush, and so long as the rush lasts, it sounds pretty great” and SPIN proclaimed the album as “near perfect pop.”  In the Fall of 2008 Motion City Soundtrack further showcased their talents when they released alternative versions of five songs off Even If It Kills Me as an iTunes exclusive.  The culturally acclaimed hit TV series Gossip Girl featured the alternative version of “Fell In Love Without You’” in their season premiere that fall.

Enter 2010 and Motion City Soundtrack are poised to take another giant step forward with the imminent release of My Dinosaur Life – 12 new songs that are lyrically contemplative, poignantly honest, and cleverly and culturally astute.  The music harkens back to early Motion City Soundtrack with is grit and hooks while employing the musicianship and maturity the band has gained over the past seven years.  During these years they’ve accomplished quite a bit – including headlining Warped tour, Bamboozle and the mvtU Campus Invasion Tour to playing Lollapalooza, Fuji Rock Festival and Honda Civic Tour.  They’ve won two mtvU Woodie Awards – in 2005 the Breaking Woodie for Best Emerging Artist and in 2008 the Best Video Woodie for “It Had to Be You.”  Motion City Soundtrack has worked incredibly hard over the past seven years for everything they’ve achieved and they’re excited about the next chapter.

My Dinosaur Life Track Listing:

1. Worker Bee
2. A Lifeless Ordinary (Need A Little Help)
3. Her Words Destroyed My Planet
4. Disappear
5. Delirium
6. History Lesson
7. Stand Too Close
8. Pulp Fiction
9. @!#?@!

10.  Hysteria

11.  Skin And Bones

12.  The Weakends

This post was submitted by greg.

It’s Official! Motion City Soundtrack Confirm My Dinosaur Life as Title of New Album

Band Set to Release “Disappear” – First New Studio Song in More than Two Years – Exclusively via iTunes on October 20^th!

New York, NY – Motion City Soundtrack confirm My Dinosaur Life as the title of their new album and Columbia Records debut.  The album was produced by Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus, who first teamed up with the boys in 2005 when he produced Commit This to Memory, and mixed by Andy Wallace (Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine, Sonic Youth).  To give fans their first taste of what’s to come, the band will be releasing “Disappear” – their first new studio song in more than two years – exclusively through iTunes on October 20^th.

Motion City Soundtrack has not only built up a reputation for their catchy songs and idiosyncratic lyrics, but as a very visual band with their elaborate and smart videos.  That said, they are already working on a video for “Disappear” to be released next month.  For the most up-to-date information please visit the band’s web site:  www.motioncitysoundtrack.com.

This post was submitted by greg.