MUSIC NEWS
"WOW! This CD is a name-maker! I remember about five years ago, running into these guys at an Alkaline Trio show at some guys house. They used to be a local ska band (just another high school band), but now they deserve national admiration. Denny Raspberry (drums and drums), Mat Hone (Bass and vocals), and Scott Doyle (Guitar and vocals) are raw. This album, thier latest of 5, will rock your panties off. "Never Known," "Died Smiling and A Failure." and "Girlfriend in a Coffin" really stand out on this CD. And don't forget the classic "Punk Rock Girl." These guys are melodic, punk based, fun-having rockers. If any record company gets thier hands on them, they're liable to squeeze them till they turn blue. So be sure to check them out. This is a must have album! Good Job Guys! I think you have more than 5 fans now! Rachel Blomstrom

HOUSTON PRESS
BY BOB RUGGIERO
It's not apparent until about halfway through this record -- and even then only if you've been following the printed lyrics -- that No Place Else to Go is a concept record that actually tells a story. Sure, the concept -- a relationship gone bad -- isn't a new one, and each song on the CD follows a narrative story line that's all too familiar to young lovers, stretching from initial euphoria to bitterness and resignation. But here's where No Place Else to Go veers from the pack -- to the list above, you can add terrible tragedy, and the finding of inner peace. That's because, unlike most relationships records, this one ends up with the girlfriend on Prozac and then dead, and lucky for us, it makes for a better story.
Though O'Doyle Rules is loosely categorizable as a pop-punk band -- and thus part of what is possibly the most annoying genre in contemporary rock -- it's heartening to report that the band happily eschews the whiny vocals and nursery-rhyme rhythms of the Blinks and Charlottes of the world. Furthermore, guitarist-singer Scott Doyle's power chords are too meaty for mall punk; hell, his riffage on songs like "Died Smiling and a Failure," "Girlfriend in a Coffin" and "The Way You Make Me Feel" calls to mind the likes of Megadeth and Crazy Horse.

The lyrics on No Place Else to Go are actually insightful. Whether our stung-by-love narrator suffers initial shock on "Never Known," decides to drown his sorrows across the border in "Mexico" or battle the voices in his head on "We Will Miss You," the words will ring true to anyone who's experienced the dissolution of an intense romance. The record's one cover, a version of the Dead Milkmen's "Punk Rock Girl," is the sole joyous moment on the record -- but it's only a precursor to tragedy. No Place Else to Go is a solid listen, and it will certainly make you feel better about your own romantic entanglements.

THE UNIVERSITY STAR
4 stars

O’Doyle Rules’ latest album, No Place Else To Go, is a dorky, goofy take on traditional rock styles, interlaced with humor and sarcasm. By no means does this mean that it’s a bad album; au contraire, mon freres, this release rocks steady.

In the style of Green Day and Blink-182, O’Doyle Rules combines some damned fine guitar work and kickass drums with its particular brand of skewed hilarity. Granted, the two aforementioned bands went lame and mainstream, but you have to appreciate what it is that they were trying to remind rock fans everywhere of - Stop being so f**king serious! And O’Doyle does a great job of bringing that idea back to the forefront. From the opening track to its "secret" songs, O’Doyle Rules does a chuckleful job of crooning and wailing, singing of the woes of hate, envy and failure, but laughing about it. Make no mistake; this band has no desire to take the B.S. of everyday life seriously. For example, one song is titled "Never Date Anyone on Prozac." And in the song "Mexico," the lead singer complains of "La diarrea me quema," which is open to interpretation (I don’t speak Spanish), and asks his girl to "shake her maracas." Oh yeah, and the band covers "Punk Rock Girl" by the Dead Milkmen and do it absolute justice.

"No Place Else To Go" is delightfully cheesy and ridiculous, and at the same time it’s some f**king good rock. And, man, that hidden song is just retarded hilarity. If you get a chance to pick this one up, do so. It’s a good album to laugh at, get drunk with and laugh at some more. How cool is this? From the back of the CD cover: "All songs copyrighted by O’Doyle Rules - unauthorized reproduction will result in bad things happening to you, verbal abuse, and is a violation of applicable laws - dude." - Jeff Miller

Punk Planet issue 63
The goofy cover on this one made me think this was going to be some joke band, but O'Doyle Rules plays catchy, midtempo pop punk. There are nice melodies and even some "oooh oooh" vocal parts. Well-recorded for a self-released record with decent songs, but nothing new. (KM)

AMP MAGAZINE
"This is their 5th self produced self-released cd. It's pretty good. Fairly poppy, upbeat new wave pop - punk type stuff. Think of J-Churchs's early singles, mixed in with a dash of downbeat Nerf Herder, and a touch of Cheap Trick. They've decided it's time to get signed, and there's certainly a lot worse out there."

HUSSIESKUNK
O'Doyle Rules - No Place Else To Go - 2004 - Self-Produced So why did I wait so long to review this disc? Well, there was a lot of crappy CDs in front of it which slowed the reviewing process down a bunch, but now I have heard O'Doyle Rules several times and I am kicking myself (and all the crappy CDs) for not getting to it sooner! This three-piece band from somewhere in Texas (I think), play straight-up power pop punk tunes that are both catchy and quite dancable! The tracks on here are groove-laced and, well, kinda touching. The vocals are not your standard punk attitude scream-fest or excitable sounds...they're more along the lines of a mellow intensity. The guys in O'Doyle Rules have quite a sense of humor too, which is apparent in the hidden tracks portion of the disc, it really sucked me in during those few minutes. There are twelve listed tracks on the disc, many of which float around the 3 minute mark, but the tracks are solid through and through. All in all, O'Doyle Rules plays a mellow, but dramatic pop punk with a little bit of a seventies kinda rock ballad feel to it (maybe its the funky bass lines?) that is refreshing and mellowing. -MG

INTERPUNK
This album is a dorky, goofy take on traditional rock styles, interlaced with humor and sarcasm. Make no mistake; this band has no desire to take the B.S. of everyday life seriously.