27 Albums That Shaped the First 27 Years of My Life, #5: Yellowcard - Paper Walls

As I quickly approach my 27th birthday (an age, coincidentally, that many musicians met their own mortality), I have been thinking about the role that music has played in my life. I have not played an instrument for nearly sixteen years and have never been in a band, but I would still consider myself an audiophile. The 26000 songs on my hard drive would agree with me as well.

Because of all those things, I thought it would be as good a time as any to compile my list of the 27 albums that most shaped these first 27 years of my life. Starting Friday January 31, I will be posting one album from the list every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday until we reach #1 just before my birthday.

Let me make one thing abundantly clear: I am not saying that these are the 27 greatest albums of all time. I am not so arrogant to believe that my personal opinion is the definitive voice on music. I like what I like. Hopefully you will be able to unearth some gems from my list. If not, that is alright. These songs and albums are important to me regardless of anyone’s opinions of them.

#5: Yellowcard – Paper Walls
Release Date: July 17, 2007
When I first heard the album: January 2008

Why I loved it then: From 2003 to 2007, Yellowcard was a band that I respected and enjoyed whenever I heard them, but they were not a band I thought about very often. In fact, from 2005 on, I had pretty much forgotten they existed. That changed when I got Madden 2008 for Christmas. Once again, a Yellowcard song (“Fighting”) was included in the game’s soundtrack, and I instantly fell in love with it. So I went online to find other songs from the album. Not only did I connect with the album, but because of Paper Walls, Yellowcard became one of my favorite bands. The album was emotional and intense yet still somehow maintained the high energy that Ocean Avenue became famous for. It was pop punk the way pop punk was meant to be. It wasn’t necessarily flashy, but it didn’t need to be.

Why I still love it now: Yellowcard has become one of my five favorite bands of all time, and this album went a long way toward them gaining that status. It brings me back to a specific period in my life. During the beginning of 2008, I knew that things were changing and that I needed to change with the times. I was in my last semester on campus at ONU before student teaching, and I knew that I was going to have to figure myself out as a person and as a teacher. My pursuit of Stacie was nearing the expiration date, and I wasn’t sure what to do about her or myself. I finally came to the painful realization that I let myself go during my college years, and I had do something about it to not only regain my health but also to gain some confidence for the first time in my life. And Yellowcard was the soundtrack for that time period. From January to May 2008, the only band I listened to while in my car was Yellowcard. Since I commuted 350 miles a week, I listened to them a lot. They became my driving buddies, and they were a steady friend during those days, a constant during a period in which change was on the horizon. Paper Walls will remind me of the period in my life that I knew I needed to change things and then went out and did it.

Lingering Lyric: “When we were only kids/ And our time couldn't end/ And how tall did we stand/ With the world in our hands/ And we were only kids/ And we were best of friends/ And we hoped for the best/ And let go of the rest”
Top Tracks: Fighting, Shrink the World, Keeper, Shadows and Regrets, Five Becomes Four, Afraid, Dear Bobbie, Paper Walls


Previous Entries
27. Avalon - In a Different Light
26. The Dangerous Summer - Golden Record
25. Just Surrender - If These Streets Could Talk
24. The Lumineers - The Lumineers
23. Relient K - Two Lefts Don't Make a Right... But Three Do
22. Better Luck Next Time - Third Time's a Charm
21. Linkin Park - Minutes to Midnight
20. ZOEgirl - Life
19. My Chemical Romance - Welcome to the Black Parade
18. Anberlin - Blueprints for the Black Market
17. Bright Eyes - I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning
16. Rise Against - The Sufferer & the Witness
15. We the Kings - We the Kings
14. Yellowcard - Ocean Avenue
13. New Found Glory - Nothing Gold Can Stay
12. The Graduate - Anhedonia
11. Hawk Nelson - Letter to the President
10. Jimmy Eat World - Bleed American
9. A Day to Remember - Common Courtesy
8. Anberlin - New Surrender
7. New Found Glory - Coming Home
6. FM Static - What Are You Waiting For?