The All-American Rejects (album)

For the album by Bikini Kill, see Reject All American.

The All-American Rejects is the debut studio album by American rock band The All-American Rejects, originally released October 15, 2002, by Doghouse Records^[2] before being re-released on February 4, 2003,^[3] by DreamWorks Records.

The All-American Rejects
Studio album by The All-American Rejects
Released	October 15, 2002
Recorded	2001
Studio	Mission Sound, Headgear
Genre	Pop punk alternative rock power pop emo pop^[1]
Length	42:54
Label	Doghouse
Producer	Tim O'Heir
The All-American Rejects chronology
Same Girl, New Songs (2001) The All-American Rejects (2002) Move Along (2005)
Singles from The All-American Rejects
"Swing, Swing" Released: December 2, 2002 "The Last Song" Released: April 11, 2003 "Time Stands Still" Released: July 14, 2003

Production and promotion

The band duo of Tyson Ritter and Nick Wheeler recorded the album in 2001 after being signed by the independent label Doghouse Records. Sessions were held at Mission Sound and Headgear Studio, Brooklyn, New York City, with producer and engineer Tim O'Heir. He mixed the album at Mission Sound; it was mastered by Emily Lazar at The Lodge in New York City.^[4]

In October, the band went on tour with CKY.^[5] They later released The All-American Rejects on October 15, 2002. It was promoted with two release shows, and two acoustic in-store performamces.^[5] The following month, the band went on tour with Motion City Soundtrack and Northstar.^[6] The album attracted the attention of DreamWorks Records, who signed The All-American Rejects to them and re-released their LP in early 2003, when it gained commercial success; earning a Platinum Certification from Canada and a Platinum edition from the United States. On January 28, 2003, the band performed on The Late Late Show.^[7] In April 2003, the band filmed a music video for "The Last Song" in Los Angeles, California.^[8] In May 2003, the band went on a tour of Canada, with Flashlight Brown.^[9] On June 11, the band appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.^[10] Between mid-July and early August, the group appeared on the Warped Tour.^[11] On July 21, the band performed on Total Request Live.^[12] Following Warped Tour, the band appeared at the Terremoto Festival.^[13] On September 30, the band appeared on MuchOnDemand.^[14] In November, they went on tour of the UK with Motion City Soundtrack and Limbeck.^[15]

The All-American Rejects was released as a CD, a vinyl LP pressed in orange (also pressed in a limited amount of red and blue) and a cassette tape exclusively in Indonesia.

Singles

The band's debut single "Swing, Swing" was released on December 2, 2002, when they were joined by two new members; Mike Kennerty on rhythm guitar and Chris Gaylor on drums - months after recording the album. "Swing, Swing" peaked at #8 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks in the United States and #13 on the UK Singles Chart respectively, gaining the band media attention on both sides of the Atlantic, a music video followed its release on January 7, 2003.^[16] The second single "The Last Song" was released on April 21, 2003^[17] and charted on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks at #29 and the UK Singles Chart at #69, a music video followed its release a month later.

The band's third and final single from the album "Time Stands Still" was released on July 14, 2003,^[18] but gained no commercial success. A music video directed by Meiert Avis followed its release in August. The album's opening track "My Paper Heart" was later released in late 2003 as a promotional single - a music video made up of footage from the band's Live from Oklahoma... The Too Bad for Hell DVD! as well as their "Lost in Stillwater" documentary was released to help promote it.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[19]
Blender	^[20]
Common Sense Media	^[21]
IGN	7/10 ^[22]
LAS Magazine	Favorable ^[23]
Melodic	^[24]
Now	^[25]
PopMatters	(average)^[3]
Rolling Stone	^[26]
Spin	A−^[27]

The All-American Rejects received mixed reviews from music critics. Spin magazine gave it a grade of A−.

AllMusic stated that The All-American Rejects are "A talented band destined for great things" and that "[The band] are capable songwriters, accomplished vocalists, and skilled instrumentalists. Guitar-driven and underpinned with a humane-sounding drum machine cranking out frenetic backbeats, each cut on this self-titled debut brims with harmonies that recall the early Who and classic Beach Boys.^[19] Kaj Roth of Melodic stated that the pop rock duo had "plenty of good vibes and catchy uptempo powerpop that will force the rain to take a hike and let the sun shine through", and favoured the song "Your Star"; saying it has "A superb groove that will make you ride a horse on the rodeo" and that "'Time Stands Still' will make the flowers bloom in the middle of winter."^[24]

Elizabeth Bromstein of Now magazine was more negative towards the sound of the album and gave it a rating of 1 out of 5 stars, quoting "As if their horrifyingly overdone pop-punk thing weren't bad enough, The All-American Rejects seem intent on embodying their name. Every last song on this record deals with lost love and loneliness. Incorporating the odd classic rock or 80s pop element doesn't improve things. In fact, it makes it worse, since it feels like they've crammed everything they know in here."^[25]

The album was included at number 49 on Rock Sound's "The 51 Most Essential Pop Punk Albums of All Time" list.^[28] BuzzFeed included the album at number 35 on their "36 Pop Punk Albums You Need To Hear Before You F——ing Die" list.^[29] Alternative Press ranked "Swing, Swing" at number 19 on their list of the best 100 singles from the 2000s.^[30]

Track listing

All songs written by the All-American Rejects.^[4]

No.	Title	Length
1.	"My Paper Heart"	3:49
2.	"Your Star"	4:21
3.	"Swing, Swing"	3:53
4.	"Time Stands Still"	3:31
5.	"One More Sad Song"	3:04
6.	"Why Worry"	4:16
7.	"Don't Leave Me"	3:28
8.	"Too Far Gone"	4:05
9.	"Drive Away"	3:00
10.	"Happy Endings"	4:25
11.	"The Last Song"	5:00
Total length:		42:47

Japanese / UK bonus track/ Amazon USA CD

No.	Title	Length
12.	"The Cigarette Song"	3:36
Total length:		46:23

Personnel

Personnel per booklet.^[4]

The All-American Rejects Tyson Ritter – vocals, bass Nick Wheeler – guitars, drums, keyboards, programming

Production and design Tim O'Heir – producer, engineer, mixing Emily Lazar – mastering The All-American Rejects – art direction Asterik Studio – illustrations, layout Erin Thompson – object photography

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2003) Peak position Japanese Albums Chart^[31] 86 UK Albums Chart^[32] 50 US Billboard 200^[33] 25 US Billboard Top Heatseekers^[34] 8 US Billboard Top Independent Albums^[33] 9

Year-end charts Chart (2003) Peak position US Billboard 200 77

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)^[35]	Gold	50,000^^
United Kingdom (BPI)^[36]	Silver	60,000^^
United States (RIAA)^[37]	Platinum	1,000,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Country	Date	Format	Label
United States	October 15, 2002 (original)	CD, digital download	Doghouse
Australia	January 17, 2003		DreamWorks
United States	February 4, 2003 (re-release)
United Kingdom	March 3, 2003		Polydor
United States	December 9, 2008	Vinyl LP	DreamWorks

References

Citations

1. IGN
2. "The Ultimate Punk Music Store!". Interpunk.com. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
3. Williams, Adam (2003-03-13). "The All-American Rejects: self-titled". PopMatters. Retrieved 2013-12-27.
4. The All-American Rejects (booklet). The All-American Rejects. DreamWorks/Doghouse Records. 2003. 4504606.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
5. Heisel, Scott (October 11, 2002). "All-American Rejects leave CKY tour". Punknews.org. Retrieved February 28, 2021.
6. Heisel, Scott (November 13, 2002). "Northstar e-card and tour info". Punknews.org. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
7. Heisel, Scott (January 27, 2003). "Bands on TV - week of 1/27/03". Punknews.org. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
8. Heisel, Scott (April 18, 2003). "All-American Rejects go gold, film new video". Punknews.org. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
9. White, Adam (May 8, 2003). "Flashlight Brown Touring & Shooting Video". Punknews.org. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
10. Heisel, Scott (June 9, 2003). "Bands on TV - week of 6/9/03". Punknews.org. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
11. . Warped Tour. February 6, 2003. Archived from the original on October 3, 2003. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
12. Heisel, Scott (July 21, 2003). "Bands on TV - week of 7/21/03". Punknews.org. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
13. White, Adam (July 26, 2003). "European Dates: Reconstruction, Terremoto and more". Punknews.org. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
14. Heisel, Scott (September 29, 2003). "Bands on TV - week of 9/29/03". Punknews.org. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
15. Heisel, Scott (November 16, 2003). "Motion City Soundtrack year-end touring plans". Punknews.org. Retrieved March 14, 2021.
16. "Swing, Swing | The All-American Rejects | Music Video". MTV. 2003-01-07. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
17. "FMQB Airplay Archive: Modern Rock". Friday Morning Quarterback Album Report, Incorporated. Retrieved October 30, 2016.
18. Wiederhorn, Jon (2003-08-20). "All-American Rejects Make 'Time Stand Still' With New Single - Music, Celebrity, Artist News". MTV. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
19. Semioli, Tom. "The All-American Rejects - The All-American Rejects". AllMusic.
20. [1] August 14, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
21. Goldmark, Kathi Kamen (2003-02-04). "The All-American Rejects - Music Review". Common Sense Media. Retrieved 2013-12-27.
22. Spence, D. (February 13, 2003). . IGN. Archived from the original on December 16, 2010. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
23. . Archived from the original on 2017-02-13. Retrieved 2017-02-12.
24. Roth, Kaj (February 26, 2003). . Melodic. Archived from the original on 2012-03-15. Retrieved 2012-02-01.
25. Bromstein, Elizabeth (March 13–20, 2003). . Now. Archived from the original on 2013-12-29. Retrieved 2013-12-27.
26. . Rolling Stone. January 28, 2003. Archived from the original on 2007-10-16. Retrieved 2013-12-27.
27. "All-American Rejects CD Album". CD Universe. Retrieved 2013-12-27.
28. Bird, ed. 2014, p. 69
29. Sherman, Maria; Broderick, Ryan (July 2, 2013). "36 Pop Punk Albums You Need To Hear Before You F——ing Die". BuzzFeed. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
30. Paul, Aubin (November 20, 2009). "At The Drive-In's 'One Armed Scissor' tops AP's 'Haircut 100' singles countdown". Punknews.org. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
31. "オール・アメリカン・リジェクツ-リリース-ORICON STYLE ミュージック". Oricon.co.jp. 1999-02-22. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
32. "The All-American Rejects - The All-American Rejects". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
33. "The All-American Rejects - The All-American Rejects". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
34. https://www.allmusic.com/artist/p535218/charts-awards/billboard-albums
35. "Canadian album certifications – The All-American Rejects – The All-American Rejects". Music Canada.
36. "British album certifications – All-American Rejects – The All-American Rejects". British Phonographic Industry.
37. "American album certifications – The All-American Rejects – The All-American Rejects". Recording Industry Association of America.

Sources

• Bird, Ryan, ed. (September 2014). "The 51 Most Essential Pop Punk Albums of All Time". Rock Sound (191). London: Freeway Press Inc. ISSN 1465-0185.

External links

• The All-American Rejects at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)