Nowhere Generation Rise Against

• 1 The Numbers 04:59
• 2 Sudden Urge 03:46
• 3 Nowhere Generation 03:54
• 4 Talking To Ourselves 03:24
• 5 Broken Dreams, Inc. 03:51
• 6 Forfeit 03:44
• 7 Monarch 03:32
• 8 Sounds Like 03:25
• 9 Sooner Or later 03:34
• 10 Middle Of A Dream 03:44
• 11 Rules Of Play 03:43
• Total Runtime 41:36

Info for Nowhere Generation

Multi-Gold and Platinum punk rock band RISE AGAINST is back with a provocative and dynamic new album, Nowhere Generation, the group’s first new studio effort in four years. On the upcoming release, the outspoken band points a finger at big business and politics for stacking the social and economical deck against Millennials', Gen Y’s, and Gen Z’s pursuit of The American Dream. Musically, the album is blazing, aggressive punk rock; lyrically, the eleven songs were inspired in part by input from band members' young children and Rise Against’s community of fans.

Said McIlrath, “Today there is the promise of the American Dream, and then there is the reality of the American Dream. America’s 'historical norm' that the next generation will be better off than the one that came before has been diminished by an era of mass social, economic, and political instability and a sell-out of the Middle Class. The brass ring that was promised by hard work and dedication no longer exists for everyone. When the privileged climb the ladder of success and then burn it from the top, disruption becomes the only answer.”

Rise Against recorded Nowhere Generation at The Blasting Room in Fort Collins, Colorado, under the tutelage of Jason Livermore, Andrew Berlin, Chris Beeble, and long-time producer/engineer Bill Stevenson (Black Flag, The Descendents). Stevenson has worked with the band on nearly all of their acclaimed releases since their sophomore effort, 2003’s Revolutions Per Minute, and is often described as Rise Against’s fifth member. “Bill is our not-so-secret weapon,” Principe explained. “He really has helped shape the band; he gets what we want to do and will go with us when we think outside the box. He’s the perfect producer for the style of music we play because he has an insane pop sensibility and the hardcore side to him as well."

In addition to the communal call to arms embedded in Nowhere Generation’s dynamic title track, there’s the fast and furious anti-establishment manifesto “Broken Dreams, Inc.,” the moody ballad “Forfeit,”“Sudden Urge,” a true nod to the band’s rock’n’roll side with an overall punk-vibe, the simplicity of “The Numbers” with a melody that will stick in your head, and the surprise pop candor in “Talking To Ourselves,” a standout song about wanting to be heard and wondering if anyone is listening. “It describes a lot of what Rise Against does,” says McIlrath, “to speak and scream when we feel there are things that are happening that aren’t being addressed." “When I was growing up,” said Principe, “I listened to bands like 7 Seconds, Bad Brains, Minor Threat, and Bad Religion. All of those bands’ music had a sense of hope with the world, a truly positive global view of what life can be. From the beginning, we’ve wanted Rise Against to have that same positivity, to have our music be an inspiration for people to bring about change in their own lives, they just have to put forth the effort and speak up.”

Tim McIlrath, vocals, guitar
Zach Blair, lead guitar
Joe Principe, bass
Brandon Barnes, drums

Rise Against
The darkest moments in history—those when fear and hate trump all else—are the times that define us. As politicians use bigoted rhetoric to gain power at home and abroad, and fringe groups creep from the shadows, it's tempting to succumb to despair and defeatism. But Rise Against is challenging fans to create a bold new identity together: one that is stronger than these setbacks, and bigger than any election. WOLVES, their 8th studio release, is about recognizing the power within all of us; it's a primal call for the prey to become the hunters.

"If you are in the wilderness and you hear wolves howling, what you're hearing might be an animal lost or mourning," says Rise Against's Tim McIlrath. "But it doesn't make you any less afraid. You know they're there. And you know what this powerful pack of animals is capable of."

For 18 years, Rise Against has kept its moral compass steady, using their international punk platform to speak out for social justice.

The band cut its teeth during the George W. Bush administration and has released records across three presidencies, but today's political climate forced the band to step back and rethink how they define themselves.

The record was originally titled "Mourning in America," but after the U.S. presidential election that rang hollow. It felt somber and hopeless. Members of the band felt those emotions, too, but decided they needed to create an album that focused more on our potential than our failings. They knew it needed teeth and claws. The result is WOLVES, a soundtrack for the hunt.

"In many ways, a Rise Against show is a safe space for our fans," McIlrath says. "But I realized that I don't only want to create safe spaces, I want to create dangerous spaces where misogyny can't exist, where xenophobia can't exist. I want to create spaces where those sentiments don't have any air, and they suffocate: where those ideas die. WOLVES isn't about creating a safe space, it's about creating a space that's dangerous for injustice."

The influence of the U.S. presidential election can clearly be heard in songs like "Walls" ("the monsters lost in history are now making their return") and "Welcome to the Breakdown" ("ignoring the facts, intoxicated by the throne"). WOLVES is of course shaped by the new presidency, but it's not limited to it. There is a spirt of resistance and optimism here that transcends our current crisis, and will outlast any politician.

Like all Rise Against records, the band tackles political struggles alongside personal ones, creating songs as complex as their fans. On tracks like "House on Fire" and "Politics of Love," one can hear echoes of the iconic punk/folk songwriter Billy Bragg in McIlrath's words; the personal is political, the political is personal, and it's all rooted in a revolutionary, uncompromising love.

This evolution in Rise Against's identity came against the backdrop of other changes for the band. For 11 years, they had worked closely with producer Bill Stevenson, of the Descendents and Black Flag fame. With Descendents on tour and Stevenson tied up, Rise Against stepped out of their comfort zone and began working with Nick Raskulinecz, the Grammy-winning producer who has partnered with Foo Fighters, Alice in Chains, and Deftones.

Recording with Raskulinecz meant moving to Nashville, Tennessee—far from the band's familiar worlds of Chicago and Los Angeles, and a firmly red state where Rise Against has rarely played. Political yard signs and conversations around town were constant reminders to the band that they were in new territory. And even though Nashville is a music town, it's country—not punk or hardcore. During the band's five months in the area, these outsider feelings shaped the identity of WOLVES.

Living in the South transformed the record in some unexpected ways. "As people on the news are arguing about immigration and class warfare, we are driving down the highway and seeing Civil War battlefields and monuments," McIlrath says. "When you tour these battlefields, you hear about what kind of muskets they used. But shouldn't we be talking about what got us to that point as a country?"

As further evidence of the geographic influence on the record, it's comprised not just of anthems of resistance, but also reconciliation. Living in Nashville drove home that we can't just focus on our differences, McIlrath says. If we can stop and talk to each other, face to face, we might realize our common ground. We are all wolves in the same pack, circling at the gates.

"They say we're divided, we are conquered," McIlrath sings. "But our enemies have never been each other."

This album contains no booklet.