If you take the 'F' out of Bowling for Soup's initials...

Perfectopop's Best Albums of 2009
#18 Sorry for Partyin' by Bowling for Soup

Why is Bowling for Soup depicted jumping into a giant toilet on cover of their latest album, Sorry for Partyin'? The album before that, The Great Burrito Extortion Case, had more mentions of bodily wastes. In fact, jokes are in (relatively) short supply on this album. This album finds the fifteen year-old pop-punk quartet wading through their old material and producing new songs that revolve around the same old ideas, but with less snarky spirit this time around. Can anyone think of what they're doing in a toilet?...

The album opens with "A Really Cool Dance Song." The name says it all - it's catchy and as danceable as anything released by the bands "in frilly tuxedos" they try to imitate. Yet the genre-skewering inevitably leads to comparisons with their 2003 gem "Punk Rock 101." And this songs is not "Punk Rock 101." "A Really Cool Dance Song" cracks jokes about how little the band knows about dance music (they only listened to Motley Crue), while "Punk Rock 101" was a (relatively) insightful parody of the lives of emo young adults. "Dance Song" can make listeners want to dance, but "Punk Rock 101" made them want to throw up their hands while they were doubled over laughing.

Another songs that has as much trouble avoiding comparisons to previous songs as lead singer and songwriter Jared Reddick has trouble avoiding bottles of beer is "Bfff," a song about how he loves his best friend (in a heterosexual way). Though it could provoke a few chuckles, it can't compete with the delicious snark of "Friends Like You" from Great Burrito Extortion Case, the same album on which Reddick's jokes about his sexuality wore out their welcome in the song "I'm Gay."

Reddick finally puts his immature charm to good use on Sorry for Partyin''s latest single, "No Hablo Ingles." In that song, he proves that whether you didn't do your homework or your nephew wants you to take him to the Jonas Brothers movie, all you have to say to get out of it is (cuatro! cinco! seis!) "No hablo ingles." Catchy, silly, and very funny, it's one of the best songs on the album - though don't expect it to get as much airplay as "1985," or even "High School Never Ends."

And more songs continue to disappoint. "I Don't Wish You Were Dead Anymore" looks promising, but its title is by far the funniest part. However, it is probably Bowling for Soup's happiest song ever, and it's super catchy. But snark was one of Reddick's best features, and the most catty this song gets is a warning for his ex to never return to their hometown because he's doing fine.

Maybe Reddick is just too happy. "Only Young," a song about having "the best night of our lives," is just like every other song about that topic: very fun and catchy, but not remotely clever or original. By Bowling for Soup standards, it's totally forgettable.

Then again, Reddick's ballads, usually filled with delicious, sickly-sweet sap, are pretty drab on this album. "Me With No You" is a pity party attended by an impressive assortment of cliches. "Love Goes Boom" is an echo of the disaster metaphors at the end of Great Burrito Extortion Case in "Don't Let It Be Love" and "If You Come Back to Me." It's a solid song, but Reddick could have written it in his sleep.

But even when trying out a relatively original concept, Reddick stumbles about like the eternal drunk he's always painted himself as. He's written some good songs featuring spoken phone calls with girlfriends, so he decides to flesh that concept out to a whopping 3 minutes 39 seconds on "If Only." The twist ending is great, but the long conversations chop up the song and make for a jarring listening experience. With more singing, less talking over guitars, the song could be quite cute.

If Reddick is into innovative ideas, he should just creative a concept album of ballads about inanimate objects (and some very animated parts of his body) personified as beautiful women. On Sorry for Partyin', three of the album's best songs personify three of Reddick's favorite things: beer, America, and his... Wena.

The album's first single, "My Wena," is all about Reddick's girlfriend Wena, who is very close to him. She's quite popular with the ladies, she loves being held at night, and... I think you get the idea. Immature to the max, but it made this prissy seventeen year-old girl giggle uncontrollably like a prepubescent boy. Gross, immature - definitely a must-hear.

Listeners with a bit more discretion (but just a bit) may prefer "Hooray for Beer," a love song about Reddick's favorite beverage. Of course, the man has extolled his love of beer in the past more often than Disney Channel stars have sung about believing in dreams, but this song doesn't feel stale. It's catchy, clever, and one of the album's best tracks. Kind of the quintessential Bowling for Soup song.

The pretending-nonhuman-things-are-pretty-girls idea worked great on "Beer" and "Wena," but the concept is terribly suited for "America (Wake Up Amy)." Reddick personifies the United States as a beautiful girl from out of town, which works great at first - "She bullies at school/Her parents were cool." A lighthearted parody of American culture could easily follow, but apparently Reddick had his fill of skewering celeb culture on "High School Never Ends." Now he's moving from LA to the big leagues: Washington DC.

Reddick's attempt at political commentary has a generic anti-war message: "wake up, America, don't want to fight anymore." I know I've been complaining that Bowlign for Soup isn't funny enough anymore, but this song is hilarious since earlier on the album, Reddick urged listeners to answer questions like "Where'd you leave your pants?" with the catch-all "No hablo ingles." He also, in case you forgot, told listeners to shout "Hooray for beer!" and check out his Wena. Now that's the type of man I want to take foreign policy advice from.

Reddick's pacifist logic essentially goes as follows: America is a bully. No one likes bullies. Bullies have to buy their own beer. Therefore, America should stop picking fights.

Listeners get another peek into the fascinating inner workings of Reddick's mind on "I Gotchoo," the catchiest track on the album. Eschewing their usual guitars in favor of an insanely catchy piano melody, the song is a stream-of-consciousness journey through Reddick's brain, as he thinks about everything from chocolate-covered cherries to the capital of North Carolina. In the chorus, Reddick explains that "If you were me, you'd probably see what I'm talking about." True, but you don't need to understand his thought process to appreciate the hilariously random lyrics and great groove of the melody. Catchy, funny, random - this is the Bowling for Soup I've been looking for throughout the album.

The album's last original track, "I Can't Stand L.A.," is another great one. Sounding like a punked-up classic show tune, the song features shout-outs to cities around the country... Reddick just can't stand L.A.

The album (without bonus tracks, though there are plenty of those scattered around) closes with a polka rendition of Bowling for Soup's signature bonus track "Belgium." After an album with a few great tracks and a lot that feel like the guys are just phoning it in (to put it politely), "Belgium Polka" is a real party song and a breath of fresh air.