If nothing else, Anthology isn’t patently annoying. That alone seems to be a pretty big feat for modern skacore bands.

Where the Impossibles’ brand of punkified ska rhythms isn’t out of the ordinary in any sense, the band manages to maintain an element of integrity by avoiding the fart-joke humor and worn-out obnoxious stupidity common in the genre. This level-headedness is enough to buoy this album, keeping it from sinking into the cold waters of forgettable skacore buffoonery.

For a skacore band to really attract much attention, it must either craft an easily identifiable sound, a la the Bosstones, or, like Operation Ivy, have something truly worthwhile to say. The Impossibles have neither. Where the band plays a solid, hornless style, it does little to do anything to break out of the mold the legion of bands preceding it created, nor does it even take a shot at lyrics with any sort of social relevance.

The result is an adequate, if less than explosive sound. The Impossibles are not without some chops, as evidenced in many spots on the album, from the subtle muted-strings guitar melodies coupled with the driving choruses of "Eightball" or the sleepy bass line of "Something Fierce." Mixing ripping guitars in the majority of its choruses, the Impossibles don’t shy from energy. However, many of the band’s harder arrangements lack the hooks needed to pull off the trick of jumping between ska and punk styles at the drop of a hat.

Lyrically, the Impossibles weigh in better than many of their contemporaries. With strong, from-the-heart pop love songs making up many of this album’s tracks, pop fans will find lots to latch onto, from the poignant "Erin with an `E’" to the tender "Plan B." Delivered well at most times, co-singer Rory at times sounds as if a hot fork was jabbed up his butt, making the album’s vocal tracks hard to endure at times.