Kill It Live

Audio Mixer: Kyle Black.
Recording information: Buzzbomb Sound Labs, Orange, CA; The Chain Reaction, Anaheim, CA.
Photographer: Jon Weiner.
No matter how hard bands try, there's an energy in punk rock that's hard to capture on a studio album. Something about all the sweat and heat generated by a club full of fans during frenzied singalongs and gang choruses makes the live experience one that's easy to get hooked on and hard to re-create, something New Found Glory attempt with Kill It Live. Recorded at the the Chain Reaction in Anaheim, California, New Found Glory's first live album does a great job of harnessing the live energy of not just the band, but of the fans. A show with a capacity small enough that all the attendees' pictures fit inside the liner notes, it's easy to feel the feedback loop created between the band and the crowd as both begin to feed off one another's energy. This makes for a live album that not only appeals to longtime fans, but feels like the best greatest-hits compilation a new listener could ask for. Though the album also features three new studio tracks from the band, the real draw here is the live set, which finally shows why New Found Glory have become such an enduring force in pop-punk. ~ Gregory Heaney