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Living Well Is the Best Revenge

October 28, 2023

Living Well Is the Best Revenge is the second studio album by American rock band Midtown. Following the conclusion of the touring cycle of their debut album Save the World, Lose the Girl (2000), the group went to California to work on their next album. Sessions were held at Larrabee East, Los Angeles, California, and Media Vortex, Burbank, California with producer Mark Trombino. It followed the pop punk sound of their debut, and was compared to Good Charlotte and Fenix TX.

Living Well Is the Best Revenge
Studio album by
Midtown
ReleasedApril 16, 2002
RecordedOctober–November 2001
StudioLarrabee East, Los Angeles, California; Media Vortex, Burbank, California
GenrePop punk, rock
Length37:53
LabelDrive-Thru, MCA
ProducerMark Trombino
Midtown chronology
Save the World, Lose the Girl
(2000) 		Living Well Is the Best Revenge
(2002) 		Forget What You Know
(2004)

Preceded by two songs, and a supporting slot for Face to Face, Living Well Is the Best Revenge was released on Drive-Thru and MCA Records on April 16, 2002. It reached number 90 on the Billboard 200. The album received generally positive reviews from music critics, many of which commented on the melodies and harmonies. A music video for "Like a Movie" was released the following month. Throughout the rest of the year, the group toured mainland Europe (as part of the Deconstruction Tour), the US (twice) and the UK.

Background and production Edit

Midtown released their debut album Save the World, Lose the Girl through independent label Drive-Thru Records on February 15, 2000.[1] Initial promotion consisted of supporting slots for New Found Glory, All and Reel Big Fish, and an appearance on that year's Warped Tour.[2] In May 2001, the band released a split EP with Millencolin, which featured two new songs ("Get It Together" and "You Should Know").[3] Following this, they performed on Warped Tour for the second time in July, before a supporting slot for Blink-182 in July and August.[4] After the conclusion of this trek, the band traveled to California,[5] where they spent three weeks in pre-production working on 20 songs, which had been whittled down from 30.[6][7]

Recording took place in October and November 2001[8][9] at Larrabee East in Los Angeles, California and Media Vortex in Burbank, California. Sessions were produced by Mark Trombino, and engineered by Trombino and Justin Smith. They were assisted by engineers Pete Novak and Dave Ahlert.[10] Trombino, having previous experience as a drummer in Drive Like Jehu, focused on getting a perfect drum sound with Hitt.[11] They had recorded it over two-and-a-half months, in contrast to the 20 days they had to record Save the World, Lose the Girl. Trombino remarked that it was a shame they did not have any time to experiment for that album; Saporta said they "really got to see what he was all about" for Living Well Is the Best Revenge, "which was awesome because we got the full Trombino treatment". One example he cited was when they brought an organ into the studio for a single day, only to use it for a ten-second part.[12] Trombino mixed the recordings at Extasy South in Los Angeles[10] in December 2001 and early 2002.[6][13] Brian Gardner mastered the recordings at Bernie Grundman Mastering in Hollywood, California with assistance from Mike Bozzi. Vinnie Caruana of the Movielife added additional backing vocals to "Find Comfort in Yourself".[10]

Composition Edit

Living Well Is the Best Revenge continued the pop punk sound of their debut,[14] earning comparisons to Good Charlotte and Fenix TX.[15] All of the music was written credited to the band, while vocalist/bassist Gabe Saporta wrote all of the lyrics with two exceptions: "Perfect" and "Find Comfort in Yourself" by guitarist Hearth Saraceno, and "One Last Time" by guitarist Tyler Rann.[10] Saporta said the opening track "Become What You Hate" is about the various types of people who compromise their own personal beliefs for success and "liberating yourself from those people".[16] The song's intro recalled Eric Martin Band's "Sucker for a Pretty Face".[15] It is followed by two rock tracks: "Still Trying" and "Get It Together".[17]

"Like a Movie" is about a woman who suffers a traumatic event and ends up in a vulnerable position.[18] The pop-orientated "There's No Going Back"[19] is followed by "Perfect", a Weezer-lite ballad that is sung by Saraceno.[20][21] The slow-tempo "One Last Time", which was reminiscent of SR-71,[15] is sung by Rann.[20] "A Faulty Foundation" is the hardest and fastest number on the record, and talks about lost love. The penultimate track "In the Songs" is an ode to the band's friends in New Jersey for endorsing them over the years. The closing song "Find Comfort in Yourself" is a punk rock track.[17]

Release Edit

Leading up to New Years Day 2002, the band embarked on a brief east coast tour, in addition to playing some shows with Good Charlotte and Mest.[22][13] In January 2002, the band toured across mainland Europe, and returned to the US where they supported Jimmy Eat World.[13] On February 19, 2002, "Become What You Hate" was made available for streaming through the group's website.[23] On March 24, "A Faulty Foundation" was posted online.[24] In April and May, the group supported Face to Face on their headlining US tour; the trek included an appearance at Skate and Surf Fest.[25][26] Living Well Is the Best Revenge was released on April 16[23] as a joint release between Drive-Thru and MCA Records.[10] At the time, Drive-Thru had a distribution deal with MCA Records. The deal allowed MCA to acquire Drive-Thru Records' bands over a period of time.[27] Rann mentioned that the sole tie that they had with Drive-Thru at this point was the label being contractually obliged to have their logo on the back cover of the album, and he had not "spoken to any of the people there in over a year".[28] Best Buy sold the album at a reduced cost alongside albums by their contemporaries Jimmy Eat World and Fenix TX.[29]

The following day, the band held an interview with AbsolutePunk where they discussed their disintegrating relationship with Drive-Thru and their appraisal of MCA.[30] It was removed and later reappeared on the website Born Backwards a few days later.[31] When Punknews.org reported on the interview, a firm on behalf of Drive-Thru threatened to sue some of their users for libel if they did not remove specific comments.[32] Shortly afterwards, Drive-Thru posted their response directly on Born Backwards.[33] Rann said the label's response was "really terrible because not only was it a completely different thing about personal things but on top of it, it wasn’t even true".[28] On May 6, the group filmed a music video for "Like a Movie" with director Ross Richardson in Los Angeles.[34] The clip was posted online to the band's website at the end of the month.[35]

In June, the band toured across Europe as part of the Deconstruction Tour,[36] and then trekked through the continent with the Movielife.[28] In August, the group performed at the Reading and Leeds Festivals in the UK.[37] In September and October, the group went on a headlining US tour, titled the Best Revenge Tour. They were supported by Taking Back Sunday, Recover and Armor for Sleep.[38][39] To help promote the tour, the band held a contest where a person could win signed memorabilia and a personal phone call.[40] Partway through the trek, Taking Back Sunday were forced to drop off[41] and were replaced by the Reunion Show.[42] Following this, the group embarked on a UK tour with Recover to close the year.[11] In April 2003, the group performed at Skate and Surf Fest.[43] Between early July and early September, the group supported Reggie and the Full Effect on their headlining US tour.[44]

Reception Edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [14]
Ink 19Favorable[45]
Kerrang!Favorable[46]
Melodic     [15]
The Michigan Daily     [47]
Modern FixFavorable[48]
PopMattersMixed[18]
Punknews.org     [17]
Slant Magazine     [20]

Living Well Is the Best Revenge charted at number 90 on the Billboard 200, selling 11,153 copies in its first week.[49][50] It has appeared on best-of emo/pop punk album lists by Houston Press[51] and Loudwire.[52]

Living Well Is the Best Revenge received generally positive reviews from music critics. Modern Fix called it "too poppy", before clarifying that they've "listened to this album way too many times to justify that as a negative comment."[48] It liked the "lighthearted lyrics" that support the "soft and strong" melodies, "which is cool but feels overdone."[48] Margie Libling of Ink 19 wrote that it was a "perfect blend of melodic yet driven tracks" signalling itself out as "an original and distinct album."[45] The intertwining lead vocals resulted in "really great harmonies."[45] Lollipop Magazine writer Scott Hefflon said it was "mostly straight-up cutesy punkpop".[21]

Punknews.org staff member Scott Heisel complimented Trombino's "crystal clear" production, enabling the group to come across "as loud as possible" while still leaving "space for [them] to grow".[17] Melodic's Johan Wippsson viewed the band as more enjoyable to listen to than their peers, finding the tracks were "on a good level all through[out]".[15] Kerrang! writer Paul Travers saw the record as something "so sweet and sugary that it could turn your radiant smile into tombstone stumps".[46] The "saccharine melodies and vocal harmonies" could make the listener "quite ill," if they were not "accompanied by rarely less than buzzing energy levels and some seriously addictive hooks."[46]

AllMusic reviewer Heather Phares said it "picks up more or less" where their debut album "left off, delivering plenty of revved-up, melodic punk-pop."[14] Trombino's production "adds to the album's slightly dated, constrained sound."[14] Jason Damas of PopMatters said the lyrics were "actually quite throughtful", and considered the album "one of those sounds-happy-but-is-lyrically-downbeat records".[18] Slant Magazine's Aaron Scott said the despite Saporta's voice having "previously combined snottiness with catchiness", the record displayed "melodies lacking both attitude and pop hooks."[20] The band "shines on [the] slower tracks", however, "they aren’t bright enough to save the rest of the album."[20]

Track listing Edit

All music written by Midtown. All lyrics written by Gabe Saporta, except "Perfect" and "Find Comfort in Yourself" by Hearth Saraceno, and "One Last Time" by Tyler Rann.[10]

  1. "Become What You Hate" – 2:50
  2. "Still Trying" – 2:58
  3. "Get It Together" – 3:28
  4. "Like a Movie" – 3:32
  5. "There's No Going Back" – 3:10
  6. "Perfect" – 3:40
  7. "You Should Know" – 2:39
  8. "One Last Time" – 3:29
  9. "A Faulty Foundation" – 2:43
  10. "In the Songs" – 3:33
  11. "Find Comfort in Yourself" – 2:41

Bonus tracks

  2. "Make This Right" – 3:05
  3. "Let Go (Remix)"

Personnel Edit

Personnel per booklet.[10]

Charts Edit

Chart (2002) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[53] 90

References Edit

Citations

  1. ^ Phares, Heather. "Save the World, Lose the Girl - Midtown | Release Info". AllMusic. from the original on September 7, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  2. ^ "Old Midtown News". Midtown. from the original on June 17, 2001. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  3. ^ "Millencolin/Midtown [Split CD] - Millencolin/Midtown | Release Info". AllMusic. from the original on September 7, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  4. ^ "Tour Dates". Midtown. from the original on August 1, 2001. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  5. ^ "News". Midtown. from the original on August 1, 2001. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
  6. ^ a b Libling, Margie (February 18, 2002). "Save the World, Lose the Girl: Life Through the Eyes of Midtown". Ink 19. from the original on May 9, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  7. ^ Purdom, Ben. . Line and Ink. Archived from the original on November 12, 2001. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  8. ^ . Thursday. Archived from the original on June 25, 2003. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  9. ^ Melanie (November 13, 2001). . Supersonic Mag. Archived from the original on August 21, 2002. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g Living Well Is the Best Revenge (Booklet). Midtown. Drive-Thru/MCA Records. 2002. 112 886-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. ^ a b Shari Black Velvet 2003
  12. ^ . Music Head. April 14, 2002. Archived from the original on April 2, 2004. Retrieved August 7, 2022.
  13. ^ a b c . Punk-It. December 19, 2001. Archived from the original on March 8, 2003. Retrieved August 7, 2022.
  14. ^ a b c d Phares, Heather. "Living Well Is the Best Revenge - Midtown | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. from the original on December 22, 2015. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  15. ^ a b c d e Wippsson, Johan (July 2, 2007). "Midtown - Living Well Is the Best Revenge". Melodic. Archived from the original on September 4, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  16. ^ Heisel, Scott (March 24, 2002). "Midtown featured in Seventeen Magazine". Punknews.org. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  17. ^ a b c d Heisel, Scott (April 16, 2002). "Midtown - Living Well Is The Best Revenge". Punknews.org. from the original on May 30, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  18. ^ a b c Damas, Jason (September 24, 2002). "Midtown: Living Well Is the Best Revenge". PopMatters. from the original on January 3, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
  19. ^ Ward 2002, p. 10
  20. ^ a b c d e Scott, Aaron (April 17, 2002). "Review: Midtown, Living Well Is the Best Revenge". Slant Magazine. from the original on April 3, 2018. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
  21. ^ a b Hefflon, Scott (June 28, 2002). "Midtown – Living Well Is the Best Revenge – Review". Lollipop Magazine. Retrieved March 12, 2022.
  22. ^ White, Adam (November 30, 2001). "Midtown New Years Shows". Punknews.org. from the original on May 13, 2020. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  23. ^ a b Heisel, Scott (February 19, 2002). "New Midtown Song Available for Streaming". Punknews.org. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  24. ^ Heisel, Scott (March 24, 2002). "EXCLUSIVE: Midtown". Punknews.org. from the original on 2016-07-17. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  25. ^ Paul, Aubin (February 2, 2002). "Skate and Surf Fest 2002". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
  26. ^ DuFour, Matt (March 19, 2002). "Face To Face Ruin Everything". The Fader. Archived from the original on April 10, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  27. ^ Billboard 1999, p. 74
  28. ^ a b c Cavallo, Debbie; Zietz, Jessica (April 26, 2002). . Rec Room Magazine. Archived from the original on February 12, 2005. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
  29. ^ Heisel, Scott (April 16, 2002). "Best Buy to sell new Midtown album at reduced price". Punknews.org. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  30. ^ Heisel, Scott (April 17, 2002). "Midtown exposes Drive-Thru?". Punknews.org. from the original on May 14, 2020. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  31. ^ Rieflin 2002, p. 16
  32. ^ Heisel, Scott (April 23, 2002). "An Open Letter to the Punk Community". Punknews.org. from the original on May 14, 2020. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  33. ^ White, Adam (April 22, 2002). "Reaction to Midtown Interview posted". Punknews.org. from the original on May 14, 2020. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  34. ^ White, Adam (May 3, 2002). "New Found Glory / Midtown Videos". Punknews.org. from the original on May 14, 2020. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  35. ^ Heisel, Scott (May 31, 2002). "Midtown completes video". Punknews.org. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  36. ^ Heisel, Scott (March 21, 2002). "No Use For Touring Europe?". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 16, 2021.
  37. ^ Heisel, Scott (May 17, 2002). "Midtown to play Reading/Leeds Festivals [and UCLA for free!]". Punknews.org. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  38. ^ Heisel, Scott (August 23, 2002). "Midtown heads on "Best Revenge" Tour". Punknews.org. from the original on 2016-07-17. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  39. ^ . Punk-It. February 22, 2003. Archived from the original on April 13, 2003. Retrieved August 7, 2022.
  40. ^ Heisel, Scott (October 6, 2002). "Midtown". Punknews.org. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  41. ^ Heisel, Scott (September 16, 2002). "Taking Back Sunday singer injured; band pulls off Midtown tour". Punknews.org. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  42. ^ Heisel, Scott (September 17, 2002). "Taking Back Sunday care package/The Reunion Show to fill spot on Midtown tour". Punknews.org. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  43. ^ Heisel, Scott (April 3, 2003). "Finalized Skate and Surf Fest lineup announced". Punknews.org. from the original on May 17, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  44. ^ White, Adam (May 11, 2003). "Reggie & The Full Effect Summer Dates". Punknews.org. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  45. ^ a b c Libling, Margie (June 13, 2002). "Midtown Living Well is the Best Revenge". Ink 19. from the original on July 18, 2019. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  46. ^ a b c Travers, Paul (April 2002). . Kerrang!. Archived from the original on June 7, 2002. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  47. ^ Ding 2002, p. 8
  48. ^ a b c "Review: Midtown". Modern Fix. 27 February 2014. from the original on September 5, 2020. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  49. ^ Fiasco, Lance (April 25, 2002). . idobi Radio. Archived from the original on June 15, 2021. Retrieved March 20, 2022.
  50. ^ White, Adam (April 25, 2002). "Midtown reaches #90 on Billboard". Punknews.org. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  51. ^ Hlavaty, Craig (July 1, 2011). "Full Collapse: The Best Pop-Punk & Emo Albums Of 2002". Houston Press. from the original on August 3, 2017. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  52. ^ Waldman, Scott (February 26, 2020). "The Best Emo Albums From 1999-2008: A Discussion". Loudwire. from the original on August 20, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  53. ^ "Midtown Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved September 5, 2020.

Sources

  • Billboard (September 11, 1999). "Newsline..." Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 37. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. ISSN 0006-2510. from the original on July 19, 2018. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  • Ding, Tony (May 13, 2002). "Midtown attempts to hit the mainstream". The Michigan Daily. from the original on September 12, 2020. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  • Rieflin, Bill (June 2002). "QuickFix". CMJ New Music Monthly. No. 102. CMJ Network, Inc. ISSN 1074-6978. from the original on 2020-09-12. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  • Shari Black Velvet (February 2003). "One Last Time". Black Velvet. Redditch: Shari Black Velvet (35). ISSN 1355-1477. from the original on 2017-01-15. Retrieved 2020-09-05.
  • Ward, Christopher (February 25, 2002). "REviews". CMJ New Music Report. Vol. 70, no. 751. ISSN 0890-0795. from the original on September 12, 2020. Retrieved September 7, 2020.

External links Edit

October 28, 2023
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Living Well Is the Best Revenge is the second studio album by American rock band Midtown Following the conclusion of the touring cycle of their debut album Save the World Lose the Girl 2000 the group went to California to work on their next album Sessions were held at Larrabee East Los Angeles California and Media Vortex Burbank California with producer Mark Trombino It followed the pop punk sound of their debut and was compared to Good Charlotte and Fenix TX Living Well Is the Best RevengeStudio album by MidtownReleasedApril 16 2002RecordedOctober November 2001StudioLarrabee East Los Angeles California Media Vortex Burbank CaliforniaGenrePop punk rockLength37 53LabelDrive Thru MCAProducerMark TrombinoMidtown chronologySave the World Lose the Girl 2000 Living Well Is the Best Revenge 2002 Forget What You Know 2004 Preceded by two songs and a supporting slot for Face to Face Living Well Is the Best Revenge was released on Drive Thru and MCA Records on April 16 2002 It reached number 90 on the Billboard 200 The album received generally positive reviews from music critics many of which commented on the melodies and harmonies A music video for Like a Movie was released the following month Throughout the rest of the year the group toured mainland Europe as part of the Deconstruction Tour the US twice and the UK Contents 1 Background and production 2 Composition 3 Release 4 Reception 5 Track listing 6 Personnel 7 Charts 8 References 9 External linksBackground and production EditMidtown released their debut album Save the World Lose the Girl through independent label Drive Thru Records on February 15 2000 1 Initial promotion consisted of supporting slots for New Found Glory All and Reel Big Fish and an appearance on that year s Warped Tour 2 In May 2001 the band released a split EP with Millencolin which featured two new songs Get It Together and You Should Know 3 Following this they performed on Warped Tour for the second time in July before a supporting slot for Blink 182 in July and August 4 After the conclusion of this trek the band traveled to California 5 where they spent three weeks in pre production working on 20 songs which had been whittled down from 30 6 7 Recording took place in October and November 2001 8 9 at Larrabee East in Los Angeles California and Media Vortex in Burbank California Sessions were produced by Mark Trombino and engineered by Trombino and Justin Smith They were assisted by engineers Pete Novak and Dave Ahlert 10 Trombino having previous experience as a drummer in Drive Like Jehu focused on getting a perfect drum sound with Hitt 11 They had recorded it over two and a half months in contrast to the 20 days they had to record Save the World Lose the Girl Trombino remarked that it was a shame they did not have any time to experiment for that album Saporta said they really got to see what he was all about for Living Well Is the Best Revenge which was awesome because we got the full Trombino treatment One example he cited was when they brought an organ into the studio for a single day only to use it for a ten second part 12 Trombino mixed the recordings at Extasy South in Los Angeles 10 in December 2001 and early 2002 6 13 Brian Gardner mastered the recordings at Bernie Grundman Mastering in Hollywood California with assistance from Mike Bozzi Vinnie Caruana of the Movielife added additional backing vocals to Find Comfort in Yourself 10 Composition EditLiving Well Is the Best Revenge continued the pop punk sound of their debut 14 earning comparisons to Good Charlotte and Fenix TX 15 All of the music was written credited to the band while vocalist bassist Gabe Saporta wrote all of the lyrics with two exceptions Perfect and Find Comfort in Yourself by guitarist Hearth Saraceno and One Last Time by guitarist Tyler Rann 10 Saporta said the opening track Become What You Hate is about the various types of people who compromise their own personal beliefs for success and liberating yourself from those people 16 The song s intro recalled Eric Martin Band s Sucker for a Pretty Face 15 It is followed by two rock tracks Still Trying and Get It Together 17 Like a Movie is about a woman who suffers a traumatic event and ends up in a vulnerable position 18 The pop orientated There s No Going Back 19 is followed by Perfect a Weezer lite ballad that is sung by Saraceno 20 21 The slow tempo One Last Time which was reminiscent of SR 71 15 is sung by Rann 20 A Faulty Foundation is the hardest and fastest number on the record and talks about lost love The penultimate track In the Songs is an ode to the band s friends in New Jersey for endorsing them over the years The closing song Find Comfort in Yourself is a punk rock track 17 Release EditLeading up to New Years Day 2002 the band embarked on a brief east coast tour in addition to playing some shows with Good Charlotte and Mest 22 13 In January 2002 the band toured across mainland Europe and returned to the US where they supported Jimmy Eat World 13 On February 19 2002 Become What You Hate was made available for streaming through the group s website 23 On March 24 A Faulty Foundation was posted online 24 In April and May the group supported Face to Face on their headlining US tour the trek included an appearance at Skate and Surf Fest 25 26 Living Well Is the Best Revenge was released on April 16 23 as a joint release between Drive Thru and MCA Records 10 At the time Drive Thru had a distribution deal with MCA Records The deal allowed MCA to acquire Drive Thru Records bands over a period of time 27 Rann mentioned that the sole tie that they had with Drive Thru at this point was the label being contractually obliged to have their logo on the back cover of the album and he had not spoken to any of the people there in over a year 28 Best Buy sold the album at a reduced cost alongside albums by their contemporaries Jimmy Eat World and Fenix TX 29 The following day the band held an interview with AbsolutePunk where they discussed their disintegrating relationship with Drive Thru and their appraisal of MCA 30 It was removed and later reappeared on the website Born Backwards a few days later 31 When Punknews org reported on the interview a firm on behalf of Drive Thru threatened to sue some of their users for libel if they did not remove specific comments 32 Shortly afterwards Drive Thru posted their response directly on Born Backwards 33 Rann said the label s response was really terrible because not only was it a completely different thing about personal things but on top of it it wasn t even true 28 On May 6 the group filmed a music video for Like a Movie with director Ross Richardson in Los Angeles 34 The clip was posted online to the band s website at the end of the month 35 In June the band toured across Europe as part of the Deconstruction Tour 36 and then trekked through the continent with the Movielife 28 In August the group performed at the Reading and Leeds Festivals in the UK 37 In September and October the group went on a headlining US tour titled the Best Revenge Tour They were supported by Taking Back Sunday Recover and Armor for Sleep 38 39 To help promote the tour the band held a contest where a person could win signed memorabilia and a personal phone call 40 Partway through the trek Taking Back Sunday were forced to drop off 41 and were replaced by the Reunion Show 42 Following this the group embarked on a UK tour with Recover to close the year 11 In April 2003 the group performed at Skate and Surf Fest 43 Between early July and early September the group supported Reggie and the Full Effect on their headlining US tour 44 Reception EditProfessional ratingsReview scoresSourceRatingAllMusic nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 14 Ink 19Favorable 45 Kerrang Favorable 46 Melodic nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 15 The Michigan Daily nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 47 Modern FixFavorable 48 PopMattersMixed 18 Punknews org nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 17 Slant Magazine nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 20 Living Well Is the Best Revenge charted at number 90 on the Billboard 200 selling 11 153 copies in its first week 49 50 It has appeared on best of emo pop punk album lists by Houston Press 51 and Loudwire 52 Living Well Is the Best Revenge received generally positive reviews from music critics Modern Fix called it too poppy before clarifying that they ve listened to this album way too many times to justify that as a negative comment 48 It liked the lighthearted lyrics that support the soft and strong melodies which is cool but feels overdone 48 Margie Libling of Ink 19 wrote that it was a perfect blend of melodic yet driven tracks signalling itself out as an original and distinct album 45 The intertwining lead vocals resulted in really great harmonies 45 Lollipop Magazine writer Scott Hefflon said it was mostly straight up cutesy punkpop 21 Punknews org staff member Scott Heisel complimented Trombino s crystal clear production enabling the group to come across as loud as possible while still leaving space for them to grow 17 Melodic s Johan Wippsson viewed the band as more enjoyable to listen to than their peers finding the tracks were on a good level all through out 15 Kerrang writer Paul Travers saw the record as something so sweet and sugary that it could turn your radiant smile into tombstone stumps 46 The saccharine melodies and vocal harmonies could make the listener quite ill if they were not accompanied by rarely less than buzzing energy levels and some seriously addictive hooks 46 AllMusic reviewer Heather Phares said it picks up more or less where their debut album left off delivering plenty of revved up melodic punk pop 14 Trombino s production adds to the album s slightly dated constrained sound 14 Jason Damas of PopMatters said the lyrics were actually quite throughtful and considered the album one of those sounds happy but is lyrically downbeat records 18 Slant Magazine s Aaron Scott said the despite Saporta s voice having previously combined snottiness with catchiness the record displayed melodies lacking both attitude and pop hooks 20 The band shines on the slower tracks however they aren t bright enough to save the rest of the album 20 Track listing EditAll music written by Midtown All lyrics written by Gabe Saporta except Perfect and Find Comfort in Yourself by Hearth Saraceno and One Last Time by Tyler Rann 10 Become What You Hate 2 50 Still Trying 2 58 Get It Together 3 28 Like a Movie 3 32 There s No Going Back 3 10 Perfect 3 40 You Should Know 2 39 One Last Time 3 29 A Faulty Foundation 2 43 In the Songs 3 33 Find Comfort in Yourself 2 41Bonus tracks Make This Right 3 05 Let Go Remix Personnel EditPersonnel per booklet 10 Midtown Gabe Saporta lead vocals bass Heath Saraceno backing vocals guitar Rob Hitt drums backing vocals Tyler Rann backing vocals guitarAdditional musician Vinnie Caruana additional backing vocals track 11 Production Mark Trombino producer mixing engineer programming Justin Smith engineer Pete Novak assistant engineer Dave Ahlert assistant engineer Brian Gardner mastering Mike Bozzi assistant Tim Stedman art direction design Justin Stephens photography Marco Orozco designCharts EditChart 2002 Peak positionUS Billboard 200 53 90References EditCitations Phares Heather Save the World Lose the Girl Midtown Release Info AllMusic Archived from the original on September 7 2020 Retrieved September 4 2020 Old Midtown News Midtown Archived from the original on June 17 2001 Retrieved September 4 2020 Millencolin Midtown Split CD Millencolin Midtown Release Info AllMusic Archived from the original on September 7 2020 Retrieved September 4 2020 Tour Dates Midtown Archived from the original on August 1 2001 Retrieved September 4 2020 News Midtown Archived from the original on August 1 2001 Retrieved September 6 2020 a b Libling Margie February 18 2002 Save the World Lose the Girl Life Through the Eyes of Midtown Ink 19 Archived from the original on May 9 2016 Retrieved September 5 2020 Purdom Ben Midtown interview Line and Ink Archived from the original on November 12 2001 Retrieved March 12 2022 Tourdiary Thursday Archived from the original on June 25 2003 Retrieved February 18 2021 Melanie November 13 2001 Midtown Rob Supersonic Mag Archived from the original on August 21 2002 Retrieved March 12 2022 a b c d e f g Living Well Is the Best Revenge Booklet Midtown Drive Thru MCA Records 2002 112 886 2 a href Template Cite AV media notes html title Template Cite AV media notes cite AV media notes a CS1 maint others in cite AV media notes link a b Shari Black Velvet 2003 Head 2 Head with Midtown Music Head April 14 2002 Archived from the original on April 2 2004 Retrieved August 7 2022 a b c Midtown Punk It December 19 2001 Archived from the original on March 8 2003 Retrieved August 7 2022 a b c d Phares Heather Living Well Is the Best Revenge Midtown Songs Reviews Credits AllMusic Archived from the original on December 22 2015 Retrieved September 4 2020 a b c d e Wippsson Johan July 2 2007 Midtown Living Well Is the Best Revenge Melodic Archived from the original on September 4 2020 Retrieved September 4 2020 Heisel Scott March 24 2002 Midtown featured in Seventeen Magazine Punknews org Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 a b c d Heisel Scott April 16 2002 Midtown Living Well Is The Best Revenge Punknews org Archived from the original on May 30 2019 Retrieved September 4 2020 a b c Damas Jason September 24 2002 Midtown Living Well Is the Best Revenge PopMatters Archived from the original on January 3 2020 Retrieved January 3 2020 Ward 2002 p 10 a b c d e Scott Aaron April 17 2002 Review Midtown Living Well Is the Best Revenge Slant Magazine Archived from the original on April 3 2018 Retrieved January 3 2020 a b Hefflon Scott June 28 2002 Midtown Living Well Is the Best Revenge Review Lollipop Magazine Retrieved March 12 2022 White Adam November 30 2001 Midtown New Years Shows Punknews org Archived from the original on May 13 2020 Retrieved September 5 2020 a b Heisel Scott February 19 2002 New Midtown Song Available for Streaming Punknews org Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Heisel Scott March 24 2002 EXCLUSIVE Midtown Punknews org Archived from the original on 2016 07 17 Retrieved April 24 2018 Paul Aubin February 2 2002 Skate and Surf Fest 2002 Punknews org Retrieved February 15 2021 DuFour Matt March 19 2002 Face To Face Ruin Everything The Fader Archived from the original on April 10 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Billboard 1999 p 74 a b c Cavallo Debbie Zietz Jessica April 26 2002 Midtown Rec Room Magazine Archived from the original on February 12 2005 Retrieved April 16 2023 Heisel Scott April 16 2002 Best Buy to sell new Midtown album at reduced price Punknews org Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Heisel Scott April 17 2002 Midtown exposes Drive Thru Punknews org Archived from the original on May 14 2020 Retrieved September 5 2020 Rieflin 2002 p 16 Heisel Scott April 23 2002 An Open Letter to the Punk Community Punknews org Archived from the original on May 14 2020 Retrieved September 5 2020 White Adam April 22 2002 Reaction to Midtown Interview posted Punknews org Archived from the original on May 14 2020 Retrieved September 5 2020 White Adam May 3 2002 New Found Glory Midtown Videos Punknews org Archived from the original on May 14 2020 Retrieved September 5 2020 Heisel Scott May 31 2002 Midtown completes video Punknews org Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Heisel Scott March 21 2002 No Use For Touring Europe Punknews org Retrieved February 16 2021 Heisel Scott May 17 2002 Midtown to play Reading Leeds Festivals and UCLA for free Punknews org Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Heisel Scott August 23 2002 Midtown heads on Best Revenge Tour Punknews org Archived from the original on 2016 07 17 Retrieved April 24 2018 Armor for Sleep Punk It February 22 2003 Archived from the original on April 13 2003 Retrieved August 7 2022 Heisel Scott October 6 2002 Midtown Punknews org Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved September 5 2020 Heisel Scott September 16 2002 Taking Back Sunday singer injured band pulls off Midtown tour Punknews org Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Heisel Scott September 17 2002 Taking Back Sunday care package The Reunion Show to fill spot on Midtown tour Punknews org Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Heisel Scott April 3 2003 Finalized Skate and Surf Fest lineup announced Punknews org Archived from the original on May 17 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 White Adam May 11 2003 Reggie amp The Full Effect Summer Dates Punknews org Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 a b c Libling Margie June 13 2002 Midtown Living Well is the Best Revenge Ink 19 Archived from the original on July 18 2019 Retrieved September 5 2020 a b c Travers Paul April 2002 New Releases amp Reviews Kerrang Archived from the original on June 7 2002 Retrieved July 26 2017 Ding 2002 p 8 a b c Review Midtown Modern Fix 27 February 2014 Archived from the original on September 5 2020 Retrieved September 5 2020 Fiasco Lance April 25 2002 Midtown s Major Label Release Debuts in the Top 100 idobi Radio Archived from the original on June 15 2021 Retrieved March 20 2022 White Adam April 25 2002 Midtown reaches 90 on Billboard Punknews org Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Hlavaty Craig July 1 2011 Full Collapse The Best Pop Punk amp Emo Albums Of 2002 Houston Press Archived from the original on August 3 2017 Retrieved September 5 2020 Waldman Scott February 26 2020 The Best Emo Albums From 1999 2008 A Discussion Loudwire Archived from the original on August 20 2020 Retrieved August 17 2020 Midtown Chart History Billboard 200 Billboard Retrieved September 5 2020 Sources Billboard September 11 1999 Newsline Billboard Vol 111 no 37 Nielsen Business Media Inc ISSN 0006 2510 Archived from the original on July 19 2018 Retrieved September 5 2020 Ding Tony May 13 2002 Midtown attempts to hit the mainstream The Michigan Daily Archived from the original on September 12 2020 Retrieved September 5 2020 Rieflin Bill June 2002 QuickFix CMJ New Music Monthly No 102 CMJ Network Inc ISSN 1074 6978 Archived from the original on 2020 09 12 Retrieved 2020 09 05 Shari Black Velvet February 2003 One Last Time Black Velvet Redditch Shari Black Velvet 35 ISSN 1355 1477 Archived from the original on 2017 01 15 Retrieved 2020 09 05 Ward Christopher February 25 2002 REviews CMJ New Music Report Vol 70 no 751 ISSN 0890 0795 Archived from the original on September 12 2020 Retrieved September 7 2020 External links EditAbsolutePunk interview via Chorus fm Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Living Well Is the Best Revenge amp oldid 1171960762, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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