Our Gangs Dark Oath
| Our Gang's Dark Oath | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Aiden | ||||
| Released | 1 June 2004 | |||
| Recorded | January 2004 | |||
| Genre |
Horror punk Post-hardcore[1] | |||
| Length | 44:56 | |||
| Label | Dead Teenager, Victory | |||
| Producer | Steve Carter | |||
| Aiden chronology | ||||
| ||||
| 2006 Victory Release | ||||
 The cover of the release of Our Gang's Dark Oath by Victory Records in Europe and North America |
||||
Our Gangs Dark Oath [sic] is the debut album released by post-hardcore band Aiden on June 1, 2004. Originally, the album was only available in North America, but it was recently re-released in Europe and again by Victory Records.
"Our Gang's Dark Oath" is also the name of the second chapter of "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" by Mark Twain.
"Recording this I was thinking, 'Fucking hurry up, we don't have any money! Fucking give me that guitar, I'm doing this shit myself.' It was a crazy time, we were still kids and I never really had any plans, past making that record… I just wanted to make the best record we could then and live in that moment," wiL Francis commented, speaking to Kerrang! in 2009.[2]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Our Gang's Dark Oath" | 1:04 |
| 2. | "The Dawn Breaking Tide" | 2:30 |
| 3. | "I Set My Friends on Fire" (A quotation from the movie The Ring is featured in this song) | 3:06 |
| 4. | "Pledge Resistance" | 2:51 |
| 5. | "Bridge of Reason, Shore of Faith" (A part of the movie Stand by Me can be heard at the beginning of this track) | 3:06 |
| 6. | "Life I Left Behind" | 3:03 |
| 7. | "Looking Glass Eyes" | 2:45 |
| 8. | "Fifteen" | 2:37 |
| 9. | "Kid Becomes the Dream" | 2:24 |
| 10. | "Cold December" | 3:30 |
| 11. | "World by Storm" | 18:00 |
World by Storm
The beginning of "World by Storm" contains a sound clip from the courtroom scene of Boondock Saints.
Also, this song contains two segments of silence along with two hidden tracks. "World by Storm" ends at 3:50 followed by silence until 8:00. Then an untitled hidden track begins, a track which contains nothing but a piano. The "Piano Track" plays in regular time until 10:30, at which point the song fades out for just a second and exactly the same song begins playing in reverse. This plays until 13:00.
At this point, the song ends and another segment of silence begins. This silence ends at 15:10 and another untitled hidden track begins: this one containing acoustic guitar and the lead singer's voice. This track leads to the end of the song and album. The breakdown of "World by Storm" is as follows:
- Boondock Saints – 0:00 – 0:10
- World by Storm – 0:10 – 3:50
- silence – 3:50 – 8:00
- Piano track (hidden track, forward) – 8:00 – 10:30
- Piano track (hidden track, reversed) – 10:30 – 13:00
- silence – 13:00 – 15:10
- Silent, Perfect, Deadly (hidden track) – 15:10 – 18:00
Critical reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Kerrang! | |
| Rock Sound | |
AllMusic gave the album a neutral review, writing, "Aiden offer up a competent, if not slightly generic, dose of post-hardcore with a dark punk edge" and noting that "the group sounds more like the younger cousins of My Chemical Romance or AFI who just happened to be weaned in a screamo scene."[1]
Chart positions
| Chart | Position |
|---|---|
| Top Independent Albums | 32 |
| Top Heatseekers Albums | 30 |
Personnel
- Aiden
- William Francis – lead vocals, piano
- Angel Ibarra – lead guitar
- Jake Wambold – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Nick Wiggins – bass, backing vocals
- Jake Davison – drums, percussion
- Production
- Steve Carter – producer, engineer, mastering, mixing
- Aaron Edge – artwork, construction
- Jeff Hayes – cover photo
References
- 1 2 3 Apar, Corey. "Our Gangs Dark Oath - Aiden : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards : AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
- ↑ Griffiths, Mark. Kerrang! #1261, May 16, 2009. Treasure Chest. An Intimate Portrait Of Life In Rock. wiL Francis, p. 58