BLACK VINYL

Punk rawkers AFI exude another powerful disposition on their fifth album, The Art of Drowning. Issued on Dexter Holland's Nitro Records, AFI's quick and haughty, spiraling guitar riffs and crashing percussion make for another mishmash for single-fisted anthems for punk revivalists and enigmatic pop kids raging against the machine. Nothing short of Pennywise, D Generation, and Powerman 5000, AFI is rowdy with their old-school-inspired rants like "Ever and a Day" and "Of Greetings and Goodbyes." Frontman Davey Havok casts a rough demeanor, but certainly not anything intimidating because punk rock became friendly after the war of early-'90s grunge. The snarl and sweat are not as fashionable as it once was, but the attitude remains the same.

A1        Initiation
A2        The Lost Souls
A3        The Nephilim
A4        Ever And A Day
A5        Sacrifice Theory
A6        Of Greetings And Goodbyes
A7        Smile
A8        Story At Three
A9        Dream Of Waking
B1        The Days Of The Phoenix
B2        Catch A Hot One
B3        Wester
B4        6 To 8
B5        The Despair Factor
B6        Morningstar