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The Bright Lights Of America
by Anti-Flag


6.3

based on 9 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 6 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album

Official Artist Site

The ninth album for the quartet from Pittsburg, Pa., was produced by Tony Visconti.

LABEL:	RCA
RELEASE DATE:	01 April 2008
DISCS:	1 disc
GENRE(S):	Rock, Punk

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Alternative Press

Bright Lights is a super-serious record that demostrates some super-serious song craft. [May 2008, p.130]

The New York Times

Their sound--enhanced by the energies of a second guitarist, Chris Head, and a bassist, Chris #2--literally urges participation. Every song’s chorus helpfully comes prearranged as a sing-along: no room for sullenness here.

Q Magazine

Their thrillingly angry seventh album is a more furious companion piece to "American Idiot," raging at both social injustice and the self-righteousness of the punk underground. [June 2008, p.138]

NOW Magazine

On their seventh disc, the music successfully carries the message, thanks in no small part to Bowie/Morrissey/T. Rex producer extraordinaire Tony Visconti, who pumps even more life into these loud, rousing singalong choruses and driving power chords without sacrificing dynamics or naked emotion.

The Onion (A.V. Club)

Too much of the disc, like the histrionic "The Modern Rome Burning," swipes singsong, folk-stoked stridency from Against Me! and American Steel; the rest of it throws random orchestration at the wall and misses it altogether.

Rolling Stone

The Bright Lights of America, Anti-Flag's second major-label album and eighth overall, proves for the billionth time that good intentions don't always make good music.

Spin

Unfortunately, despite now working with David Bowie producer Tony Visconti, who infuses their angular, system-smashing screeds with timpani ("Good and Ready"), brass ("Shadow of the Dead"), and harmonica ("Go West"), Anti-Flag still don't possess the innate pop sensibility that's allowed Against Me! to make a mainstream move.

Sputnikmusic

The ambitious sound of The Bright Lights of America is a dreadful fifty-two minutes long; with an average song length over three minutes.

Under The Radar

On the Tony Visconti produced The Bright Lights of America, the band opts for the same brand of pristine song production and testosterone-soaked chants as every other mall-punk band, and, in so doing, makes it hard to discern them from the crowd. [Summer 2008]

The average user rating for this album is 6.3 (out of 10) based on 6 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

dmd d gave it a3:
This sucks compared to the previous albums.

Max H gave it a4:
If you compare this to their later albums it is less political and less anarchy influenced. Though most of their stuff is usually pretty boring this hit the lowest point. Thanks for trying, Anti-Flag. Go back to Underground Network or Die For Your Government.

Ahmet gave it a10:
This is Anti-Flag. They're fighters of the old-school punk.

Steve gave it a9:
This is the first I have heard of Anti-Flag, so I have no previous work to compare to but I liked this a lot. Not necessarily punk in the purest sense, but each song delivers something worthwhile.

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The Bright Lights Of America by Anti-Flag

The Bright Lights Of America
by Anti-Flag