Constants
New Found Glory released their fourth full length album last week. This time around, I’m very familiar with their formula. That’s not to say that the album is bad. In fact, I really like it. It has plenty of what makes NFG who they are; catchy melodies and creative (sometimes), meaningful lyrics. I mean, that’s why I liked them in the first place. In “Catalyst”, they rely on their formula, but explore more of their hardcore roots. The first track makes this very clear. But even on the hardcore influenced tracks, there is plenty of the New Found Glory catchiness that gets them radio airplay. After their self titled release, I’d have to say this is my next favorite album.
When I first started this site, I used it as an outlet for what was going on in my life. As the site grew (figuratively speaking), more and more people started reading it or stumbled upon it, so I stopped spilling out my guts, more or less, to the entire world. By doing that, I lost one of my only outlets to vent or speak my mind. At the risk of exposing my personal life, I’m going to go back to that original formula for this post. I figure I can always delete posts.
I can safely say I’m more scared now about my future than I ever have been. More so than when I graduated last year, more than when I left for college, and just slightly more scared than when I started high school. I guess the main reason why I’m more scared now is because I don’t have a constant in my life anymore. I have a job. Not a full time position, but a part time one that holds me over until I find a full time job. It’s actually a decent part time job, but since I do have a potential ticket to a higher paying job (read: engineering degree), I treat it as something I can readily leave. If you look at my room and the other rooms in my house, you would think that either that I’m about to move out, or just moved in. I don’t really consider being at my parent’s house as being constant because I don’t see myself living here permanently. I haven’t “fully” settled in and I refuse to sign up for broadband cable, locking my parents into a contract. I don’t call it “home”, I call it my parent’s house, and home for me would be the apartment I move into when I find my first full time job.
There used to be another constant in my life. It kind of went along with school. I met this person while I was at school. Once I left school, I left her also, but we very much kept in constant contact. Senior year was draining for me last year, and that’s the case this year for her. So much so that we’ve agreed to separate and give ourselves time, time that we would’ve allotted to each other, to do things that were more important. And with that, the only constant I had in my life wasn’t so constant anymore. I’m not disappointed with what happened. I was in that boat before and I understand and support the decision. It was our decision, not just hers. It just left me with nothing stable, something that I can always fall back on when things got tough. I guess I’m on a mission to find that next constant.
Something that I love about NFG is that they constantly produce songs with lyrics that everyone can relate to on some level. For me, “Sincerely” on the self-titled, “Sonny” on Sticks and Stones and “Truth of my Youth” on Catalyst are all favorites not only because they are catchy, but because they perfectly represented certain moments in my life.
: Truth Of My Youth by New Found Glory from the album Catalyst