White Crosses (album)

White Crosses
Studio album by Against Me!
Released	June 8, 2010
Recorded	August–October 2009 at Eldorado Recording Studios, Hollywood
Genre	Punk rock, alternative rock
Length	36:06
Label	Sire
Producer	Butch Vig, Alan Moulder (mixer)[1]
Against Me! chronology
The Original Cowboy (2009) White Crosses (2010) Total Clarity (2011)
Singles from White Crosses
"I Was a Teenage Anarchist" Released: April 6, 2010 "White Crosses" Released: August 31, 2010 "High Pressure Low" Released: December 21, 2010

White Crosses is Against Me!'s fifth studio album, and their second to be released on Sire Records. As with its predecessor, 2007's New Wave, the album was produced by Butch Vig. It is also the first (and only) Against Me! album to feature George Rebelo, drummer of Hot Water Music, following the departure of previous drummer Warren Oakes.

Recording began in August 2009, finishing two months later. The mixing and mastering of the album finished in February 2010, and it was released June 8.^[1][2] The initial pressing of the record included four bonus tracks.^[3]

On March 17, 2010 their first video from the album, "Rapid Decompression," was released online via AOL. A four-track digital EP for "I Was a Teenage Anarchist" was released as the first single from the album, on April 20, 2010.^[1]

The two B-sides from White Crosses are "David Johansen's Soul",^[4][5] of which an acoustic version was released on Black Crosses, and "Dead Generations"^[6] – which remains unreleased.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AbsolutePunk	83%[7]
Allmusic	[2]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[8]
PopMatters	7/10[9]
Punknews.org	[10]
Slant Magazine	[11]
Spin	[12]

White Crosses received generally favourable critical acclaim, despite being leaked three months before its retail release date.^[13] The album was mainly praised for its success in merging Against Me!'s long-time punk rock style with, according to critics, a newfound ethos of "arena-" or "radio rock", through its melody and "big" sound.^{[7][14][15][16]}

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Laura Jane Grace. 

No.	Title	Length
1.	"White Crosses"	3:36
2.	"I Was a Teenage Anarchist"	3:15
3.	"Because of the Shame"	4:21
4.	"Suffocation"	3:56
5.	"We're Breaking Up"	3:57
6.	"High Pressure Low"	4:13
7.	"Ache with Me"	3:38
8.	"Spanish Moss"	3:51
9.	"Rapid Decompression"	1:46
10.	"Bamboo Bones"	3:35
Total length:		36:06

Bonus tracks

Limited edition
No.	Title	Length
11.	"One by One"	3:34
12.	"Bob Dylan Dream"	2:59
13.	"Lehigh Acres"	3:33
14.	"Bitter Divisions"	4:02
Total length:		50:10

Re-issue
No.	Title	Length
11.	"Lehigh Acres"	3:33
12.	"Bob Dylan Dream"	2:59
13.	"One by One"	3:34
14.	"Bitter Divisions"	4:02
Total length:		50:10

iTunes Deluxe edition
No.	Title	Length
15.	"I Was a Teenage Anarchist" (acoustic)	3:38
Total length:		53:48

Black Crosses

Black Crosses
Demo album by Against Me!
Released	July 26, 2011
Recorded	2009, Goldentone Studios, Gainesville, Florida February 2010, Crescendo Studios
Genre	Punk rock, alternative rock
Length	43:07
Label	Total Treble Music, Xtra Mile Recordings
Producer	Against Me!
Against Me! chronology
Total Clarity (2011) Black Crosses (2011) Transgender Dysphoria Blues (2014)

In 2011 Against Me! launched their own record label, Total Treble Music, reissuing White Crosses with an added disc titled Black Crosses consisting of demos from 2009 (referred to as the Goldentone Studio versions) and acoustic sessions from 2010. The reissue features original artwork by Steak Mtn and a 32-page booklet with lyrics and additional artwork. The reissue was released July 26, 2011 on compact disc and as a music download, and August 9 as a triple LP.^[17][18]

Track listing

^[19]

All songs written and composed by Laura Jane Grace. 

No.	Title	Length
1.	"White Crosses"	3:14
2.	"I Was a Teenage Anarchist" (acoustic)	3:39
3.	"Because of the Shame" (acoustic)	4:28
4.	"The Western World" (Demo version of "Suffocation")	3:55
5.	"Strip Mall Parking Lots"	2:21
6.	"High Pressure Low" (acoustic)	4:18
7.	"Hot Shots" (officially untitled[20])	1:49
8.	"Spanish Moss"	2:22
9.	"Rapid Decompression"	1:45
10.	"Soul Surrender"	2:06
11.	"Lehigh Acres"	3:36
12.	"David Johansen's Soul" (acoustic)	2:49
13.	"One by One" (acoustic)	3:35
14.	"Bitter Divisions"	3:10
Total length:		43:07

Charts

Chart (2010)	Peak position
US Billboard 200[21]	34
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[22]	87
Greek Albums (IFPI)[23]	23

Personnel

^[24]

Band

• Laura Jane Grace  – lead vocals, guitar
• James Bowman – guitar, backing vocals
• Andrew Seward – bass guitar, backing vocals
• George Rebelo – drums, backing vocals
• Warren Oakes – drums, backing vocals on Black Crosses (tracks 1, 4–5, 7–11, 14)

Additional musicians

• Zac Rae – additional keyboards on White Crosses (tracks 3, 5)
• Jon Gaunt – fiddle on White Crosses (track 12), Black Crosses (track 7)
• Ron McGregor – mouth harp on White Crosses (track 12)

Production

• Butch Vig – producer
• Billy Bush – recording engineer
• Chris Steffen – assistant engineer
• Alan Moulder – mix engineer
• Darren Lawson – mix assistant
• Emily Lazar and Joe LaPorta – mastering

Art and design

• Christopher Norris and Laura Jane Grace – art direction
• Steak Mtn – design, typography, and illustration
• Autumn deWilde – band photography

References

1. http://web.archive.org/web/20100322193144/http://www.againstme.net:80/splash/. Archived from the original on March 22, 2010. Retrieved March 18, 2010. Missing or empty |title= (help)
2. Apar, Corey. "Review: Against Me! - White Crosses". Allmusic. Retrieved 2010-08-08.
3. White Crosses: Your Thoughts - Page 23
4. http://ifeelsicktomystomach.blogspot.com/2011/09/making-of-white-crosses-pt-9.html
5. http://repertoire.bmi.com/title.asp?blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=True&keyID=11259101&ShowNbr=0&ShowSeqNbr=0&querytype=WorkID
6. http://repertoire.bmi.com/title.asp?blnWriter=True&blnPublisher=True&blnArtist=True&keyID=11259103&ShowNbr=0&ShowSeqNbr=0&querytype=WorkID
7. Against Me! - White Crosses - Album Review - AbsolutePunk.net
8. "Music Review: White Crosses, by Against Me!". Entertainment Weekly. May 26, 2010.
9. Against Me!: White Crosses < PopMatters
10. Punknews.org | Against Me! - White Crosses
11. Against Me!: White Crosses | Music Review | Slant Magazine
12. Against Me!, 'White Crosses' (Sire) | SPIN.com
13. White Crosses Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic
14. LAS magazine | music, media, art, culture, life, everything. - Reviews
15. Against Me!: White Crosses | Music | Music Review | The A.V. Club
16. Revolver Profile at Metacritic.com
17. http://www.againstme.net/news/37161
18. http://againstme.net/post/12165870569/white-crosses-uk-europe-release
19. Black Crosses: Against Me!: Amazon.co.uk: MP3 Downloads
20. http://cdn.discogs.com/0xW_utjCKzhD4xAsA4FagSg4eY8=/fit-in/600x575/filters:strip_icc%28%29:format%28jpeg%29:mode_rgb%28%29:quality%2896%29/discogs-images/R-3762419-1343390191-7182.jpeg.jpg
21. "Against Me! – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Against Me!. Retrieved 03 August 2015.
22. "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved 03 August 2015.
23. "Greekcharts.com – Against Me! – {{{album}}}". Hung Medien. Retrieved 03 August 2015.
24. White Crosses (CD booklet). Against Me!. New York City: Sire Records. 2010. SIRE 524438-2.

External links

• "Against Me! Actually Were Teenage Anarchists" by Kate Harper. CHARTattack. September 22, 2010.