This review is part of a series looking back at significant albums on their anniversaries. Through the benefit of hindsight we will be viewing the album not just as it was released, but how it stands the test of time, as well as its place in the band’s discography and the genre in general.
Fat Wreck Chords – 5 October, 1999
Do You Remember When Life Was So Simple and Permanent
Some records are just meaningful immediately. Some don’t hit right away but as you get older, you feel the connection based on your new experiences. And then there’s some really special albums out there, ones that grow and evolve and change meanings, seemingly with each listen. No Use For A Name’s More Betterness!, is THAT kind of record.
We all know No Use is an icon within the scene and masters of the art. While lyricism and introspection existed in punk before Tony Sly, nobody before ever did it nearly as well. From a songwriting perspective, Tony Sly was head and shoulders above each of his contemporaries. For me, in 1999, the band released the greatest album ever on Fat Wreck, the greatest skate-punk record of all time, and just one of the best combination of songs ever put to tape. This is perfection.
2 years earlier the band took huge steps forward and progressed their sound, adding Chris Shifflett and Matt Riddle on Making Friends, but the depth, the dark and the divinity in More Betterness! was bounds above. The new members along with the longtime team of Tony Sly and drummer Rory Koff found the pocket on MB! The tracks slowed down, the melancholy of the lyrics found a groove alongside the poppy punch of the instrumentals and the soundclips brought in the perfect amount of distraction.
For me this record came out 5 days after my 18th birthday, 5 days into adulthood. At the time so much of it felt like a letter from the older brother I never had. “Lies Can’t Pretend” obviously did so with intention but each track felt like advice for adulthood from someone who made the mistakes already and knew I would repeat them without his impactful roadmap. Granted, Tony Sly was only 11 years older than me, but that’s a lifetime of experiences and trials or triumphs, so when he sang “Chasing Rainbows,” 18-year-old me felt like Laertes hearing Polonius’ monologue of maxims.
Now, 25 years later, it hits so differently. Everything still feels brilliant but that road map to adulthood in 14-steps is now a hard look in that rear-view and somehow being able to see this record as an adult and as a father to 2 young ladies, makes each verse hit harder. The most pivotal album in NUFAN’s repertoire is also the most pivotal album in my lifetime. For a quarter of a century, More Betterness! has always felt like it was written for me, written to me. And that’s really the testament to the record and to Tony’s songwriting, isn’t it?
Bad Dad (occasionally called Ed) has been on the periphery of the punk and punk-adjacent scene for over twenty years. While many contributors to this site have musical experience and talent, Ed’s musical claim to fame comes from his time in arguably the most punk rock Blockbuster Video district in NJ where he worked alongside members of Blanks 77, Best Hit TV and Brian Fallon. He is more than just an awful father to his 2 daughters, he is also a dreadful husband, a subpar writer, a terrible dresser and has a severe deficiency in all things talent… but hey, at least he’s self-aware, amirite?
Check out the pathetic attempts at photography on his insta at https://www.instagram.com/bad_dad_photography/
