Released on August 10th, 2004, Rise Against’s Siren Song Of The Counter Culture was a pretty big deal. The band’s first album on a major label after successful record releases with Fat Wreck Chords, it was the band’s breakthrough album in an era where politically-charged melodic hardcore and hardcore punk bands were getting noticed in greater numbers.
Rise Against managed to split the difference between the personal and the political, though. Alongside bands like Anti-Flag, Rise Against didn’t experience immediate success with this record’s release, despite major-label backing. At least, not until “Give It All” and “Swing Life Away” started accelerating the band’s profile to wider audiences than their previous material ever had. The record, which still maintains the band’s melodic hardcore // hardcore punk sound, is a bit more accessible – but still has enough heavy edge to appeal to the band’s earliest fans. Oddly enough, Rise Against faced accusations of “selling out” with the move to a major label, but that’s a real shame considering how much these songs still resonate.
“Swing Life Away”, though, was a major catalyst in the fame the band has today. An acoustic number that very much differentiates itself from the band’s normal style, it’s arguably the band’s most well-known song today. And since then, Rise Against have never looked back.
