Teenage diaries covered in Sharpie pen band names. A 128mb mp3 player with files entitled ‘papa_roach_last_resort_live_version.mp3’. A cracked jewel case CDR copy of Taking Back Sunday’s ‘Tell All Your Friends’. It is easy to see these staples of early 2000s emo culture as artefacts of a bygone age. On their eighth album, ‘All The Truth That I Can Tell’, Dashboard Confessional answer the question of whether the bands so synonymous with that era of heart-on-your-sleeve emo can still make exciting music. This is an album of perfectly put together songs, and a reminder that few musicians are as masterful as Chris Carrabba at writing songs to break up to.
Opener ‘Burning Heart’ sets the tone of the record – this is Dashboard as you remember them, with guitars that sit front and centre in the mix. It’s the ‘same damn burning heart’ that drove the choruses of ‘Again I Go Unnoticed’ all those years ago and Carrabba sounds as vital as ever. The longing remains, punctured with that trademark crackle in his voice. On ‘Here’s To Moving On’, acoustic guitars shimmer like 2004 never ended. Snapshots of suburban love affairs sprinkle themselves throughout with a chorus that asks for a campfire sing along. Dashboard Confessional have always been masters of capturing that feeling of nostalgic sadness. When the drums kick in on ‘The Better Of Me’ it’s a welcome surprise, echoing the full band versions of songs on the much loved ‘MTV Unplugged 2.0’.
Dashboard rely far too heavily on cliché on occasion, both lyrically and musically. You could fill a bargain CD rack with songs that reference the ‘Sunshine State’ and yet Carrabba squeezes enough feeling into these stereotypical subjects to escape falling too far into becoming a pastiche. It’s a rare lull on an otherwise soaring collection of songs that navigate heartbreak, age, depression and the chaos of modern life. When avoiding the temptation to sing the words you most expect, Carrabba is insightful about the anxieties of growing old. Wisdom accrued over years in the scene shines through with clarity.
We may never know how many old mp3 players sit collecting dust with ‘The Places You Have Come To Fear The Most’ on but the fact that after twenty-two years we are still seeing Dashboard Confessional make engaging and thoughtful albums is a testament to Carrabba’s drive. Forever the driving force behind the band, he is a constant in an ever-changing sea of bands that have come and gone over the years. ‘All The Truth That I Can Tell’ may not tread much in the way of new ground but it is trademark Dashboard Confessional, seamlessly fitting in an iconic discography.
It remains to be seen if this album will make an impact on new listeners in the way that ‘The Swiss Army Romance’ did in the year 2000, but this is definitely an album to be enjoyed by those who already have a relationship with the band. For them, it’s a chance to approach Dashboard Confessional with a fresh lens. The sound is still the same but the subject matter has changed. This is a modern Dashboard with a new set of songs ready to be sung at full volume in a sweaty room somewhere near you.
ALEX SARYCHKIN