he new Kill Your Idols record, From Companionship to Competition, is the best mediocre record since Shutdown's Against All Odds was released in 1998. I don't know about you, but I listened to that record constantly, I was psyched about the Brooklyn Youth Crew, and I rocked my Shutdown summer tour shirt until I accidentally turned it pink bleaching my friend's hair. Years later, I still enjoy that record, but it is obviously not the best hardcore album ever - Chain of Strength, can you hear me? A classic? A ten? Crucial? Not even close, but that record still gets played in my room because it is fun, honest, and my motivation to sing along has not waned after all these years.
From Companionship to Competition is just such a record. When This Is Just the Beginning first came out and Andy was doing songs like "See through You" and "I'm Still Here", I was on his side. Now, with songs like "20 Bucks" and "Don't Call Me, I Won't Call You," I am still on his side. So he's not edge anymore and he hasn't been for a while. A lot of people wanted to give up on Kill Your Idols just for that, to which Andy says, "If you really care, send me twenty bucks." How could he turn into someone he would have made fun of? What happened to caring? What happened to love? On From Companionship to Competition, Kill Your Idols isn't complaining about their lack of old friends because it's them who moved on in the end. Right? They could care less about the shade people in the hardcore scene will throw when you don't represent their ideals anymore. They have also moved on from simply not playing the songs about edge just so they don't look like hypocrites. Although this album is like a musical rebuttal, Kill Your Idols is really just playing fun, danceable hardcore with catchy melodies and witty lyrics. It's the basics of hardcore, no gimmicks needed. Other noteworthy tracks include "Only Dicks don't like Black Flag," which is hilarious, "I'll Call You Back," which is equally as amusing, and "Still Pist," a cover of the original by The Pist.
From Companionship to Competition is musically mediocre, at best. On a scale of one to ten, I would give it a 6.5 in terms of timelessness and originality. That being said, there are a few other things we value in hardcore, such as honesty, relevance, and breakdowns, which this record has no lack of. The "fuck you" is not a bitter one, but a relieved "fuck this, we're grown-ups" sort of thing. There is honesty in "I'll Call You Back" because everyone knows how hard this band works and how busy they must be. Finally, The Pist cover informs listeners that Kill Your Idols has grown up in, not out of hardcore. Like I said - this is the best mediocre record in a long time.
