I've heard a lot of criticism over the years about The All-American Rejects and their pop-punk-rock anthems, but despite the naysayers their success speaks for itself. Their latest album, their fourth, Kids In The Street, released last month, doesn't mess with the formulas much while still providing a few interesting deviations.

The first tracks of the album, "Someday's Gone" followed by "Beekeeper's Daughter" and then "Fast and Slow", make for a trio of catchy dancable pop earworms that'll burrow right into your brain and comfortably stay there all day. "Heartbeat Slowing Down" then comes in for a welcome rest filled with plaintive cries. Then "Walk Over Me"  comes back with a little smart-ass attitude. "Out the Door", a song some consider the only misstep on the disc, drags the album to a halt with it's slow opening, but it finishes with power. The title track, "Kids in the Street" almost feels like a throwback to the 1980s. "Bleed into Your Mind" is another slow song, and coupled with "Gonzo" make for a section you might pass by on your first listen, but over time I suspect they'll become many people's favorite tracks. The slow pace continues with the crooner "Affection", however it explodes in Queen-esque fashion at the end. The regular album ends with "I for You" which is yet another slower track. Every song is good, but I think the album as a whole really would have benefitted from closing on a more upbeat rockin' number.

With the Deluxe edition, there are four additional tracks. "Drown Next to Me" fits right in, being another emotion drenched song that opens slow and finishes strong. I feel this is the final track that the album really needed. Then you get demo versions of opening track "Someday's Gone" and "Bleed into Your Mind" from earlier in the album. And then is closes with a demo version of "Do Me Right" which I can only assume is a song they felt either didn't fit with the first 11 tracks for the release, or just wasn't finished. Of course, the Rejects have a habit of putting out many versions of their albums with different extra tracks on each. Thankfully for fans they can often pick up the extra songs digitally and not have to buy entire CDs of mostly music they already own.

All in all, Kids In The Street is a solid album and worth listening to.