Transit - Listen & Forgive

There comes a time when an artist makes an album that is a perfect time capsule for when it was made. Some records have that sense of hope and beginning, which works well in the spring. Some records are happy-go-lucky with upbeat tones and work perfectly in summer (i.e. Yellowcard). Then there's the albums that have a mystique to them in a more somber tone that seem to work well in autumn. Other records have that powerful push to them and sense of discontent, which is how most of us feel in winter. This is one of those autumn albums. It's difficult to describe but you know it when you hear it, and that's what having a great attatchment to music is like. You can't quite put together why an album makes things feel the way it does, but you know it once you hear it.

Set among their peers, Transit is always talked about in the same pop-punk discussion as bands like Man Overboard, This Time Next Year, The Wonder Years, The Flatliners, etc., but on this album you can tell that they aren't happy with just being a part of the scene and that is clearly evident on their new album, Listen & Forgive. The songs you would hear on their previous album, Keep This To Yourself, were ones in the same vein as a pop-punk album, but the lines were clear; they were not to be lumped into any category. There isn't constant double-beat melodies or driving locomotive rhythms, the album plays out like an indie album made by a punk band. Transit takes that to the next level on their release.

Transit - Listen & Forgive

The record starts out with the track "You Can't Miss It (It's Everywhere)", setting the mood early for the album. Very upbeat intro with beautiful guitar work in the verse that transitions smoothly to the chorus melody and weaves as such throughout the song. Prime example of where Transit seperate themselves from their peers is on this track in the chorus. When other bands would build up to a sing-a-long friendly upbeat chorus, Transit instead works in a melodic lull that isn't immediatly catchy or uplifting, but is easy croon along with. The song features extensive backing vocals, which can be also said for the entire album.


From the start, the opening track encapsulizes what the entire album is about to bring: an abnormal landscape of an album that is built on a post-punk handbook. This album more than their previous releases, blends their influences together into a sound that is all their own. Melting a mix of Death Cab For Cutie, Bayside, American Football, and Hot Water Music; the album seems very content with what it is and rightfully so, it is a great listen. When talking about the album I'd group a few songs together to let you know what the songs collectively sound like. On this album however, I simply cannot do that. Each song is different, builds upon the one before it, improves the songscape that the album creates piece by piece.

"Long Lost Friends" starts out the same: with an intriguing guitar riff that keeps the atmosphere. The vocals and drums on this song compliment each other and are the two stand-out points. How the beat matches the melody of the vocals with the atmospheric guitar below it creates the autumn tone and blends to the chorus where the song comes together, embracing all of its parts. Next up is the title track, "Listen And Forgive", that starts out slower and keeps the mellow tone throughout. Featuring more extensive gang vocals throughout, the song is extremely vocally driven and the raw emotional power given off by the entire band's vocals summerizes the labor of love that this album is. "All Your Heart" is the first song on the album with guitarist Tim Landers doing lead vocals instead of primary vocalist, Joe Boynton. That change works extremely well, giving the song a different, more somber tone. The guitar work is still very admirable, the chorus is still something you'd sing with your friends, and the song weaves through the verses, the choruses, and the breakdown; building up to the ending.

Just like the drum-vocal melody before it, "Asleep At The Wheel" features more guitar-vocal melodies that makes it feel like an acoustic song. The track stays very mellow and is perfect for the ambient feel of autumn on the album. Having said all of that for the album so far, now is when it gets better. "Cutting Corners" may be my favorite track, using a different kind of intro and taking the rhythm they had before and then turning it up a little bit. The chorus is as close to pop-punk as the album gets and the guitar theatrics throughout the chorus, pre-chorus, and verses works very well. It's a shame that it's the shortest song on the album, but it ends very fittingly with a group vocal. "Skipping Stone" is the albums lone acoustic song about moving on and analyzing life. The mix of guitars sounds phenomenal, even as they take a backseat to the vocals most of the song. For nearly the entire track the band sings along, giving the more intimate feel that fits in so well on the album.

"I Think I Know" brings the pace back up at the start but lulls into a very ambient verse, building a very atmospheric sound to the album. Easily the most adventurous song on the album, the vocals don't seem strained and when the band gets involved in them, the song really takes off. It is at this point that you see an intimate, almost nostalgic, theme begins to form on the album. This can also be heard on "Don't Make A Sound", which builds from the verses to the choruses but keeps the rhythm and tone to what comes across as almost a waltz. The song's breakdown could be one of the brightest points on the entire album, holding onto the mellow tone until the track ends. If there is any song on this record that seems the most personal, it would be "1978". Very vocally driven, the song picks up to an anthemic, yet mellow, chorus with dual-vocal harmonies. The guitars work as a complimentary piece and the drumming is very tight, allowing the vocals to soar throughout the song, even with all of the different movements. Upon hearing it, this track just feels like an extremely personal song of longing and life, twisting through different movements and experiences.

"Over Your Head" starts the same way. Working a waltz-esque tone to a slow-yet-steady chorus, the song stays very mellow until the breakdown, which builds until it is an emotionally driven shout. The song also ends very strong by holding out the last few notes, as if to say that the song personifies all they have. Finally, it is make or break time, the closing track. "The Answer Comes In Time", encapsulates every little intricacy that the album ever featured: the guitar introductions, the group vocals, the slow and powerful breakdown, this song just shouts out "CLOSER" to you. The tone of the track is like a triumphant stance of what it has gone through, despite not sounding like it accomplished complete victory.

Overall the album is one of the best I've heard in a long time. I didn't consider myself a huge fan going into listening to it, but coming out I am a complete convert. This is an album that is falling leaves and a brisk breeze in stereo. I never used the word "fun" to describe the album, but it is. This is a really fun album that will be fun to play and sing along to with friends in a mellow atmosphere. Capturing the spirit of the season, Listen & Forgive has established Transit as a band that doesn't deserve to be lumped into genres, because they have already transcended everyone people have put them in.

Recommneded Tracks: "Cutting Corners", "I Think I Know", "1978"

Recommended If You Like: "The Big Deep" by The Sleeping, "The Glass Passenger" by Jack's Mannequin, "Suburbia..." by The Wonder Years

Verdict: 8.5 / 10