Dashboard Confessional is back with their sixth studio album, Alter The Ending, boasting 12 new tracks as well as 6 acoustic versions of the same songs.

The first listen makes you wonder what happened to our emotionally and musically raw emo-kids? It seems that lead singer Carrabba ain’t no kid anymore (he’s 35 now) and Dashboard Confessional have been together for almost ten years, so maturing with age seems natural.

Album opener “Get Me Right” starts off with acoustic guitar picking, Carrabba’s vocals and a nice straight military-like drumbeat (reminiscent of “Vindicated”); simple, raw music that is probably the reason all of us fell in love with them in the first place.

But then, to help you wrap your mind around what happens next, Dashboard very gracefully eases into what can only be described as “The New Big Sound”.

Everything is more layered. More guitars, more drums and more vocals turn the already beautiful songs into something memorable. You’ll probably catch yourself humming these songs all the time thinking: who sings this song again? There’s the catchy rock tune “Until Morning”; the rock ballad “Everybody Learns From Disaster”; the piano-and-strings rock ballad “Belle of the Boulevard”; the punk-rock title track “Alter the Ending”; and even the electronic rocker “The Motions”.

But before you get all emotional thinking that all is lost; this album also contains a few genuine Dashboard diamonds. “Even now I can feel your face; resting on my chest; wrestling for sleep; and failing at it” laments Carrabba on acoustic gem “Even Now”. On “Hell On The Throat” Carrabba rips your heart from your chest with the emotional capacity of his voice. Lead guitarist John Lefler turns “No News Is Bad News” into a catchy track with his awesomely simple yet larger-than-life licks.

If you do prefer the softer sounds, you can buy the acoustic version of the album, which is now available and features the same songs. But if you’re daring enough, do yourself a favour and give this version a listen, you’ll be hooked.