Track Listing

1. Up And Go
2. Given The Chance
3. Leaving
4. Best Of Me
5. Gooodnight's Sleep
6. Almost There Going Nowhere
7. Cheek To Cheek
8. Hello Houston
9. Decisions Decisions
10. Saddest Girl Story
11. Left Coast Envy
12. Drama Summer
13. This Ride

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10983 in Music
• Released on: 2003-01-27
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
Enjoyment of the Starting Line is entirely dependent upon how you like your punk-pop. If, like Blink 182, you like it light, with a healthy spoonful of immaturity, then you'll be disappointed with the songs on Say It Like You Mean It, their first full-length album. Similarly, disappointment awaits those who are after an attitude-fused rush of pure sweat and spit. The Starting Line fall somewhere in the middle, to both their credit and detriment: playful, seemingly exuberant songs with sweet melodies buzzing around like charged electrons with serious blood and guts beneath their shiny skin.

The songs themselves revisit familiar themes ("Hello Houston" and "Leaving", for instance) and predictable acoustic number "Drama Summer" breaks up the inevitable monotony of this style. The artwork hints at maturity (think Busted a few years and a few broken hearts down the line) but the album has been overproduced, and often finely polished notes would have benefited from more of a ragged edge and some space to breath. The hooks aren't as catchy as the Dum Dums, who also played the same juvenile/serious persona, or even the Jellys, who were just plain silly. But at least you knew where you stood with them--normally humming their songs at bus stops, which, for all the playful harmonies and uplifting guitar work, you'll struggle to do here. --Ben Johncock

CD Description
Debut full-length from Churchville, PA emo-pop-punk act, following 2001's 'With Hopes of Starting Over' EP. Similar in style to New Found Glory and Blink 182, this is highly polished, inoffensive, upbeat guitar pop full of songs about girls. Recorded with cult producer Mark Trombino (Blink 182, Finch, Jimmy Eat World).

Customer Reviews

a great band like this will do amazing
i saw these guys at a concert at newcastle uni, i haddnt heard of them, but how great were they!! ive seen them on p-rock since then and their new song is the bestest. i went straight out and bought their album from a popular record store and it has been stuck in my stereo ever since. songs "like saddest girl story" and "almost there, going nowhere" will appeal to everyone and they provide a range of styles which work really well. the lead singer guy is totally hot so you got something pretty to look at too. i recon you all need to get this album cos its a must for any punk/rock/ska fan.

Better than the Ataris, but still generic...
While I was ordering 'Blue Skies, Broken Hearts...Next 12 Exits' by 'The Ataris', I noticed a link to this album in the 'Customers who bought this also bought...' section of the page. I had another £9 left to spend on my gift voucher, so I took a gamble on this. I'm glad I did.

I have to say, it's nowhere near ground breaking stuff.....at all. More mature than Blink 182, more up-beat than The Ataris, but still pretty much the same stuff. In fact, at one point I didn't even notice when my playlist transitioned between TSL and The Ataris.

That's the only bad thing I can say about the album.....it's just......generic. In fact I've listened to this album at least 8 times over, compared to the...oh....TWICE that I listened to the Ataris album I bought at the same time, and that's a very good album. That's got to stand for something.

If you're looking to expand your musical horizons, don't bother.
If you're looking for more of the same, and a safe purchase, this album is for you.

Just a perfect pop rock album
Why this obsession with categorising bands - punk, pop-punk, emo, emo-core, blah, blah...who cares what label you stick on it - just listen to the song samples. If you like excellent songs, well produced, well played, loud guitars and great vocals then just buy this. Of course you've heard this sort of stuff before. Every good tune was written in the sixties and has been reformulated since then in every shape and size - this is just a very good reformulation and it sounds great in the car....very loud. The Starting Line (along with the magnificent Ataris) are simply better at this kind of thing than anyone else.