Fight with Tools

Last updated
Fight with Tools
Fight with tools.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedOctober 16, 2007 (2007-10-16)
May 20, 2008 (2008-05-20)(re-release)
Recorded2007 at The Wrecking Room (Boulder)
Brotherhood Studios (Denver)
Genre Rap rock, jazz fusion, alternative rock, political hip hop
Length45:35
Label Independent (original release),
Universal Republic (re-release)
Producer Flobots
Flobots chronology
Fight with Tools
(2007)
Survival Story
(2010)
Singles from Fight with Tools
  1. "Handlebars"
    Released: June 15, 2008
  2. "Rise"
    Released: August 2008

Fight with Tools is the debut album by Flobots, originally released in October 2007 and re-released on May 20, 2008. The album was recorded in 2007 around the band's home state of Colorado. Fight with Tools received a mildly positive reception from critics who praised the production and serious subject matter. The album features the single "Handlebars" which became a popular hit on Modern Rock radio the following April, also becoming a popular hit in the UK (#14 [1] ), New Zealand (#26 [2] ) and Canada (#63 [3] ). The album also features the single "Rise" which also became a popular hit on Modern Rock radio after its release. In the week of June 7, 2008, the album jumped on the Billboard 200 chart 168 places and peaked at number 15, selling over 265,000 copies. The album also peaked at number 52 on the UK Albums Chart.

Contents

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [4]
Exclaim! (positive) [5]
PopMatters Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [6]
RapReviews8/10 [7]
Sputnikmusic 3.5/5.0 [8]

Fight with Tools garnered a mildly positive reception from music critics who praised the production and attention to political topics. Steve 'Flash' Juon of RapReviews praised the album for its use of live instrumentation and the lyrical delivery of both Jonny 5 and Brer Rabbit, concluding with, "The versatility of the Flobots sound makes them very hard to pin down, but it also makes for an entertaining musical journey that doesn't get bogged down by their politics or a preachy didactic presentation." [7] AllMusic's David Jeffries also complimented the band for having the ambition to tackle various political messages while backed with a live orchestra, saying that "Good points are made with skill and fine wordplay, the guitars and drums crunch along driving home the message with head-bobbing grooves, and the album opens up with the marvelous "Handlebars", a carefully crafted, slowly building tale of the ego run wild via some beautiful muted trumpet." [4] A more negative appraisal came from James Greene, Jr. of PopMatters , who criticized the album for failing to recapture what Rage Against the Machine brought before and for being preachy in its political messages. Greene stated that "At the end of the day, Flobots and their sophomore effort can be summed up by the album's third track, "Same Thing". As the chorus demonstrates, they're just saying the same things over again, giving us the same revolutionary slogans anti-establishment forces have been shouting in the face of 'The Man' for years: "We want money for healthcare and public welfare / free Mumia and Leonard Peltier!"" [6]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Flobots

No.TitleLength
1."There's a War Going On for Your Mind"1:22
2."Mayday!!!"4:36
3."Same Thing"3:29
4."Stand Up"4:38
5."Fight with Tools"4:51
6."Handlebars"3:27
7."Never Had It"5:07
8."Combat"2:05
9."The Rhythm Method (Move!)"3:52
10."Anne Braden"4:21
11."We Are Winning"3:22
12."Rise"4:10
UK bonus track
No.TitleLength
13."Iraq"3:31

Personnel

Adapted credits from the Fight with Tools booklet. [9]

Charts

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