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#3. Anberlin
Never Take Friendship Personal
Release Date: February 1, 2005
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My Anberlin story is eerily similar to my Mae story. I didn't like Blueprints for the Black Market and therefore didn't like Anberlin -- until I saw them open for Relient K (and Don't Look Down) in late 2003. Again, a live performance changed my mind and I gave Anberlin another shot. The shot really paid off when I heard Never Take Friendship Personal a couple of years later. "Paperthin Hymn" and "The Feel Good Drag" struck gold immediately, but the entire album is really just as solid. Anberlin went on to have a successful career and fans quickly forgot about NTFP for albums like Cities or Vital, but for me, Anberlin gets no better than they did right here. On top of the two already mentioned, I'd submit the title track, "Stationary Stationery," "Time & Confusion," and "Audrey, Start the Revolution!" as further evidence of this album's greatness. This is a top 5 album indeed.
- Michael Weaver
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Putting this album ahead of Cities will no doubt be a controversial decision, and it’s a decision I fully support. It’s not Anberlin’s most profound album, and it’s probably not their most musically daring, either. But what it is is simply one phenomenal track after another. For all their introspective, emo tendencies, it’s easy to forget that Anberlin can also be a downright fun band. This is their pop punk-laced magnum opus; a perfect album for teenage love and long drives. It’s impossible to listen to bangers like “A Day Late,” “Time & Confusion,” and “Audrey, Start the Revolution!” without a huge smile on your face. Seeing the band live just further proved to me that, even after so many years and albums, these are still some of their absolute best tracks. And that’s not even mentioning the criminally underrated album closer. We’ll let the grammatically incorrect title slide and call this Anberlin’s most enjoyable album from start to finish.
- Timothy Estabrooks
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