[Denver Westword Music]

Four presidential administrations later, socio-political firebrand Bad Religion is still making enemies and influencing imitators with its trademark melodic pop punk. Although guitarist/Epitaph founder Brett Gurewitz was suspiciously absent during the Clinton/Atlantic Records era, he re-upped in time for Dubya. One of the most recognizable and replicated voices in the biz, Greg Graffin is forceful and forthright without a lot of frills. Unlike cheap facsimiles who try to cram O.C. harmonies into ill-fitting punk receptacles, Bad Religion employs time-tested vocals on New Maps of Hell that burst out from the high-speed gallop and blend in like wind through luxurious locks. Desperate mechanized filters add a trans-genre fog to "52 Seconds," a lure to those seeking change, while "Requiem for Dissent" and "Submission Complete" are Celtic-based anthems worthy of New Model Army. New Maps is an apocalyptic followup to the act's first release, How Could Hell Be Any Worse? ? with our current leader answering the question.



[Daily Southtown]

3 stars


This Southern California hard-core punk band survived the ?80s and escaped the ?90s, and that?s accomplishment enough. Their new high-octane musical diatribe, though, is evidence that Bad Religion is not satisfied with just enduring.

With tracks such as ?Heroes & Martyrs, ?Requiem for Dissent,? ?Lost Pilgrim? and ?Submission Complete,? Greg Graffin & Co. take aim at what they see as nothing less than a global crisis, tearing complacency and apathy to shreds in the process. Smart, angry music from a band that continues to excel.



[Chartattack]

Old punks never die, they just keep putting out new albums that stick to proven formula. So don't expect Bad Religion to turn around and start producing country or nu-metal ? they're still pissed and they aren't gonna take it any more. Their last album, The Empire Strikes First, railed against the U.S. government. New Maps Of Hell is firmly entrenched in war and the songs portray life within the whirlwind. "Fields Of Mars" is probably the most obvious (and fantastic) example with its quasi-religious tale of battle, while "Submission Complete" is a damning indictment of soldier recruitment, complete with a chugging marching-band beat. This looks like a huge CD given it comes in at 16 tracks, but since almost all of them average about two minutes in length, it's just enough of a rhythmic blast to keep you on the edge of your seat. Kudos to Bad Religion for having long mastered the musical equivalent of a hit-and-run.



[Forth Worth Weekly]

Here?s the truest thing we can say about New Maps of Hell, Bad Religion?s latest: ?Well, it?s definitely a Bad Religion album.?

It?s not Atlantic-era bad, but it isn?t Against the Grain great, either. It?s just ... well, it?s a Bad Religion album. Between the Atlantic/Grain divide is where most of the longtime punk band?s LP?s fall. They?re all really fast. And political. And if you don?t need a dictionary to make sense of the lyrics, then you either don?t care about them or your name is Greg Graffin, in which case you wrote them anyway. Seriously, from what other band not named Rush can you expect to hear the word ?susurrations??

The Bad Religion formula could be a lot worse. After all, it could call for a corny, radio-friendly, novelty song (we?re looking at you, The Offspring) to anchor the rest of the album. New Maps of Hell doesn?t stoop to that, but it also doesn?t shy away from hooks, which again, is part of the BR template. While few would call Bad Religion pop-punk, there is enough sugar here to make the medicine go down. And, frankly, the songs need it.

As usual, Graffin (who, incidentally, has a Ph.D in evolutionary paleontology) packs his songs with lectures so verbose that you need the cushy chorus of whoa?s that follow. In fact, it?s really more like you earned them ? absorbing Maps takes some effort, but it does have its rewards. For all the polysyllabic didacticism, the music itself is empowering. As the three-part harmonies soar, the guided-lightning leads of guitarists Brett Guerewitz and Greg Hetzin whip and crack around the precision thunder of bassist Jay Bentley and drummer Brooks Wackerman. The band is tighter than a Timex. Or the doomsday clock. Bad Religion songs always have a sense of genuine urgency to them and not just because they?re fast. ?Requiem for Dissent? is a strident call to reanimate the buried bodies of revolution, and in an oblique nod to James Howard Kunstler, ?Grains of Wrath? declares that the fat, consumerist, American way is dead. ?Before You Die? asks us why we?re wasting our lives.

So it?s not Bad Religion?s best record, but even a crummy BR outing is better than anything that their Vans Warped Tour contemporaries can offer. New Maps of Hell is a necessary addition if you?ve been with the catalog for all of these years, but if you?re trying to wean your kid or little brother off the pop-punk teat, you?re better off pushing Against the Grain or leaving him to Suffer.