Artist: Various
Album: Saving Lives Has Never Sounded So Good
Tracks: 18
Review by: Christopher Thomas!

Saving Lives Has Never Sounded So Good is a collaborative benefit for the American Red Cross involving the folks at the Warped Tour as well as a slew of artists and labels involved with the tour.

If you’ve ever seen a commercial on television for one of the 236 Now That’s What I Call Music! discs, then you can think of this compilation in the same way. The title itself betrays the quality of the content on the disc. It’s not called Now That’s What I Call Really Great Music! It’s not even called Now That’s What I Call Generally Enjoyable Music! They make no claim as to the quality of the songs whatsoever. They tell it like it is: No matter how you look at it, it certainly is music.

Saving Lives performs the same function by simply showcasing some music. It’s not the best, and it’s not the worst, but it’s out there. Being a collection of currently popular artists, there are a lot of typical melodic indie rock bands, some with screaming, some not. And then there are a few artists that don’t fit neatly into that category such as Street Drum Corps and Stacy Clark (percussion and contemporary pop, respectively). Standout tracks include those by This Is Me Smiling, Plain White T’s, and Mae, all of which are thoroughly enjoyable and in their own ways set themselves apart from the other tracks on the comp.

As an introduction to many of today’s more popular indie bands, this disc serves its purpose well. As a showcase of the best indie bands, however, it is sometimes lacking. But for just a few bucks and a chance to help out the American Red Cross, it’s worth the purchase.