ARTIST: Hoobastank
TITLE: Every Man For Himself
LABEL: Island
GENRE: Alt. Rock
BITRATE: 234kbps avg
PLAYTIME: 0h 58min total
RELEASE DATE: 2006-05-16
RIP DATE: 2006-05-02

Track List

01. The Rules                       0:52
02. Born To Lead                    3:48
03. Moving Forward                  4:27
04. Inside Of You                   3:08
05. The First Of Me                 5:24
06. Good Enough                     3:21
07. If I Were You                   4:18
08. Without A Fight                 3:20
09. Don't Tell Me                   4:12
10. Look Where We Are               3:28
11. Say The Same                    4:01
12. If Only                         3:28
13. More Than A Memory              7:15
14. Finally Awake                   4:02
15. Waiting                         3:05

Release Notes:

If you liked the infectious pop-rock stylings of the last two Hoobastank albums, you’ll
enjoy Every Man for Himself just as much, if not more. "There are a lot of bands who
have success, then think they can do whatever the fuck they want on their follow-up,"
says Estrin. "On the other hand, we just DO what we do, and we do it well."

That said, Every Man does offer up some variety, even while maintaining the band’s core
sound. The epic "More Than a Memory", for example, features flutes, accordion, chimes
and trumpets. "I was listening to a lot of Pink Floyd at the time, especially The
Wall," remembers Estrin. "I like albums, and songs, that take you on a journey, that
almost come across as a movie. And that song definitely does -- it’s like Floyd, the
Beatles, and even tails off like "Sir Psycho Sexy," that old Red Hot Chili Peppers
song. I just like applying lessons from bands I admire."

Listen to "Moving Forward" and prepare to recognize a very familiar classic rock
refrain. "We wrote that song when Doug was driving one day and heard Journey’s ‘Lovin’
Touchin’ Squeezin’ on the radio," says Estrin. "We like Journey; we’re not huge fans,
but I really liked that ‘na na na na’ part of the song." He laughs. "I don’t think it’s
stealing. We made it our own style."

"The album comes out in April. I expect we’ll do some shows, meet fans, and have
critics ready to tear it apart," says Robb. "Honestly, I want to go ‘fuck it, it’s not
for you, it’s for me and the guys in the band.’ If we’re happy with it, that’s what
counts. We get a lot of shit because we don’t go out of our way to be ‘different’ --
we’re just trying to be who we are. And that’s actually the theme of the album -- being
yourself."

Estrin agrees. "I want our fans to be happy -- our hardcore fans, not those people who
just bought us after they heard ‘The Reason’," he says. "When I read our message board,
I value the opinions of our hardcore fans. If THEY think something is crap, it affects
me."

You want songs that inspire the rock’n’roll masses to hoist their lighters/cell phones
in the air? Call Hoobastank. "A lot of bands that made it big with a ballad come back
and say ‘We’re heavier now’ or ‘We’re a real rock band,’" says Estrin. "Guess what? We
know we’re a rock band, but we write ballads, too. They’re usually our most interesting
songs. And there’s more of ‘em on here than fast songs."

Speaking of slow jams, the band’s first single, "If I Were You," is a definitely on the
ballad tip. "I’m proud of it, just like ‘The Reason,’" says Estrin. "But it’s darker,
and it has a more interesting structure."

"Born to Lead" features the barking cadence of Sgt. Dale Guy. "I wouldn’t want him
there all the time, but he was cool," says Robb. "The song was about people wishing and
praying for things instead of doing something to accomplish their dreams. It’s about
getting off your ass, and I think the Sarge added a lot to the song’s vibe."

Sgt. Guy certainly knew how to hit the band’s sensitive spots. Says Estrin: "We told
him to just order us around -- so he made fun of us for writing ballads. ‘I’m sure your
mom would love that’ -- that kind of stuff."

The band started work on the album during Hooba’s last mega-tour. Estrin would come up
with musical ideas during sound checks, then record a demo later, hand it off to Doug
for melodies and lyrics, and finally, fly home with the whole band to record the
finished product during non-tour weekends.

"It wasn’t an ideal way of doing things," admits Robb. "But I think, strangely, it
affected us in a positive way. Maybe it was the energy of being on tour, but I think
the results came out far better than our previous two records."

Individuality and personal choice are the overriding themes to Every Man. "The First
of Me," for example, is Robb’s idea that people should start their own thing and be
"the first of me", instead of "the next of you." "The songs definitely reflect the
idea that you are in control of your own life, and it’s up to you to change things if
it’s not going well," says the singer. "It’s reflective of us, too. A track like ‘If
I Were You’ attacks entertainers and athletes who get rich and then lose track of how
good they have it. There was some of me in that, definitely."

Then there’s "Inside of You," which appears to be about -- fornicating. "Well, that’s
kind of the rogue track," says Robb, chuckling. "We deal with a lot of more serious
subjects, but that one comes along and it’s all flirtatious and sexual. But it still
falls into the 'you want it, go get it’ category."