CD Review: Suicidal Tendencies: 13

This is the same band you’ve always loved, even if Cyco Mike has to watch his sugar intake now.

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Review by David Feltman

Many bands have come and gone in the last 30 years and Suicidal Tendencies has itself come and gone at least three times in that span. But never has the band’s multiple hiatuses delayed an album for so long. Sure there have been a handful of splits and comps since 2000’s Free Your Soul and Save My Mind, but rumor had it that the skate punk band may have finally given in to its so-called tendencies.

Given the album title, the 13-year gap has weighed heavily on the band’s mind and the album shows a 50-year-old Cyco Mike Muir with a desire to prove he’s still got it. And for the most part he does just that. All of the youthful punk vigor of the 80s and 90s is still present in a big way. What is missing, however, is the raw, primal pulse that made Suicidal Tendencies exciting on the early albums. Like later day Red Hot Chili Peppers and Green Day, there’s a gloss that has accumulated over Muir’s sound, a gloss that comes with fame and age. Everything that was rough and reckless has become comparatively tame.

But it’s silly to take the band to task for getting older, especially when it has a sense of humor about it. On the opening track, “Shake It Out,” Muir asks, “Can someone get me a Diet Pepsi?” The line simultaneously alludes to the band’s biggest hit while making a sly self-deprecating jab. This is the same band you’ve always loved, even if Muir has to watch his sugar intake now.

While an occasionally insipid song like “Living the Fight” sneaks by, that’s nothing new for Suicidal Tendencies and it’s not enough to stop this light-hearted party album from being enjoyable. Track titles like “Till My Last Breath,” “Make Your Stand!” and “This Ain’t a Celebration” may appear over serious, but the music definitely seems intent on celebrating the band’s longevity. This is an album made for the fans.

 

In conjunction with the release of 13, Suicidal Tendencies will head out on a full U.S. tour, dubbed the ‘Slam City Tour’. The tour will feature support from Madball, Sick of It All and D.R.I. The tour will include a stop at this year’s New England Metal and Hardcore Festival in Worcester, MA on April 21st. See below for all currently confirmed tour dates.

 

SUICIDAL TENDENCIES Slam City Tour Dates with Various Support:

4/11 San Francisco, CA @ The Regency Ballroom (W/ MADBALL, WAKING THE DEAD)

4/12 Reno, NV @ Knitting Factory (W/ MADBALL, WAKING THE DEAD)

4/13 Salt Lake City, UT @ In The Venue (W/ WAKING THE DEAD, TBA)

4/14 Denver, CO @ The Summit Music Hall (W/ MADBALL, WAKING THE DEAD)

4/16 Minneapolis, MN @ Mill City Nights (W/ DRI, WAKING THE DEAD)

4/17 Chicago, IL @ House of Blues (W/ DRI, WAKING THE DEAD)

4/19 Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory (W/ SICK OF IT ALL, DRI, WAKING THE DEAD)

4/20 New York, NY @ Best Buy Theater (W/ SICK OF IT ALL, DRI, WAKING THE DEAD)

4/21 Worcester, MA @ The Palladium (New England Metal and Hardcore Festival)

4/23 Patchogue, NY @ The Emporium (W/ DRI, WAKING THE DEAD, THIS IS HELL)

4/24 Baltimore, MD @ Baltimore Soundstage (W/ SICK OF IT ALL, DRI, WAKING THE DEAD)

4/26 Charlotte, NC @ Amos’ Southend (W/ DRI, WAKING THE DEAD)

4/27 Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade (W/ DRI, WAKING THE DEAD)

4/28 Charleston, SC @ The Music Farm (W/ DRI, WAKING THE DEAD)

 

SUICIDAL TENDENCIES Tour Dates with SICK OF IT ALL, WAKING THE DEAD:

4/30 St. Petersburg, FL @ State Theatre

5/02 Miami, FL @ Grand Central

5/03 Orlando, FL @ The Plaza Live

5/06 Houston, TX @ House of Blues

5/07 Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater

5/09 Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theater

5/10 Tempe, AZ @ The Marquee

5/11 Pomona, CA @ The Fox Theater

5/12 San Diego, CA @ House of Blues

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