Since signing with the majors in 2004, Rise Against have been steadily rolling towards the apex where melodic punk and mid-’80s DC hardcore intersect. On 2006’s The Sufferer & The Witness, the band came one stop sign away from reaching that junction, crafting caustic battle cries armed with enough catchy hooks to ignite the airwaves. But on Appeal to Reason, these native Chicagoans have begun to drift near the middle of the road. From the cookie-cutter pop-punk of “The Dirt Whispered” to the Fall Out Boy–aping “Audience of One,” this is the band’s most radio-friendly effort to date, prioritizing catchy choruses over against-the-grain carnage. Tim McIlrath’s gut-wrenching screams are nowhere to be found, and while the tempo shifts remain, they’re not nearly as drastic as on previous releases. Of course, the heart-on-sleeve conviction’s still there — “Hero of War” may make you shed a tear. But with a possible third Republican term on the horizon, this record’s lack of urgency is a crime against their nation.

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