The All-American Rejects are back with their first album in 14 years, and their first ever independent release. At the height of their success in the early 2000s, the band had an established place in the pop rock landscape, one foot in emo culture and the other heading into the mainstream, but halted before they inevitably became too radio ready. Their return follows a string of free backyard pop-up concerts, a symbol of their intention to get back to their roots, American kids making fun, high octane rock, and Sandbox is a clear continuation of this energy.
With a catalogue of timeless hits behind them and a ready-made audience, the band really could have continued in any direction they wanted, but obviously planned their resurgence with genuine love for the music at the core of it. Sandbox is scruffy, urgent and emotional, in a way that you might expect the first or second album of an up-and-coming band to be, but with a grounded confidence that could only come from experience. The album hits the ground running with “Easy Come, Easy Go”, an explosion of fuzzy fender strats and catchy lyrics. There are other highlights on the album with teeth like this, “King Kong” is impressive both lyrically and musically, and “Clothesline” introduces a pop like energy seamlessly with falsetto notes and interesting grooves. The album lacks, however, in it’s ordering. Mundane, folky tracks like “Green Isn’t Yellow” nestle themselves between filler tracks that lack the passionate chaos of the album’s highlights, making for a bit of a downhill trend with random peaks, an uncomfortable top to bottom listen.
While it has its drawbacks and could do with a re-shuffle, Sandbox has some great moments and can be credited for its energy and integrity. A slightly messy album full of passion and thought is a far better return than an awkward or dull attempt to reappear without context.
