Credit must be given where it's due, and I do like the effort put into this one. To be frank, I thought the first 5 songs were pretty shit. All the while I was listening, wondering what became of these guys. The most frustrating song of those first few is 'Eternal.' I wrote in my little ratings thing that it almost sounds to me like these guys are trying to sound bad because, otherwise, this is a pretty good song. But it's just done poorly.
Anyway, I want to be fair to these guys and I have to say, that from song 6 the mood in the room seems to lift and they start to give it a fair crack. They drop the mopey post-grunge blandom and have a crack at some decent melodic type of rock. Spoiler alert - I don't actually think there's a keeper track on the album, but holy shit they get close.
'Temples,' 'Alive,' 'Heaven Knows' and 'Someone's watching over me' are all, four in a row, good, strong songs. And then 'Love Is The Only Place' hits and I was taken aback. Unfortunately, they're not the band they used to be and I am 100% convinced they couldn't hit the heights of the debut even if they did everything possible to try... but goodness do they get close with this track. A bit of polish and finesse and this one wouldn't be a bad stab at what they did so well on their debut.
Sadly, the album's worst song follows in 'The Undertaker' - what a piece of shit, lol. Really grates me because this is the discussion point I've had with christians that aggravates me the most, and it's in a song, so naturally I hate it. And then 'Afterlife' isn't amazing, but pretty decent. Before the album finishes on a high, with one of the best songs on the album with a nice hook - 'Strange New World.'
So overall, like I say, credit where it's due. After the first few songs I was close to closing up shop and calling this a pass, but thankfully, they took me on a ride and it was pretty cool. They're a dim shadow of the band they used to be, to be totally fair, but I like that they showed a bit of fight with this album.
Better than expected.
Wow,
Totally blown away by this review. And I am totally 100% in the opposite direction. This is by far their best release... Period. As far as polish and glam, there's enough here to satisfy most rockers. The first song on the album 'Gravedigger' is so catchy and hook laden even Night of the Living Dead fans would love it!!
I'm not a big fan of the ballads. They are about average but getting better.
Bad Day is a change of pace, not a fan.
BraveNation is a phenomenal call to arms song (and nod to Warrant's 'Cherry Pie')
Ghosts, Temples & Alive is a great 3 song rocker with Alive being the pinnacle of the trio.
Someone’s Watching Over Me is an excellent CCM submission to further spread their reach.
Love is the Only Place And Strange New World are typical average rock songs.
The Undertaker is a beast of it's own and a welcome change of pace.
Overall, I think The Brave is going in a GREAT direction with this album after the release of their acclaimed return album "Evie's Little Garden". While not a perfect album, Stayce and the gang do an awesome job of releasing music that does not follow the trend of all the new repetitive, millennial, rehashed music of today, while also giving us a feel for the old tried and true rock n roll.
I definitely call this a step up from their debut which is the only step up from "Evie's" and am looking forward to the climax of this climb with whatever comes next. Until then, you should definitely get caught by this Gravedigger
The Brave - Gravedigger (New release coming summer of 2022)
in Christian Rock and Metal
Posted
Wow,
Totally blown away by this review. And I am totally 100% in the opposite direction. This is by far their best release... Period. As far as polish and glam, there's enough here to satisfy most rockers. The first song on the album 'Gravedigger' is so catchy and hook laden even Night of the Living Dead fans would love it!!
I'm not a big fan of the ballads. They are about average but getting better.
Bad Day is a change of pace, not a fan.