Shinedown

[zacharyamelie]

I loved their last one, it was easily in my top 10 the year it came out, it also made me go nuts with anting to discover other modern rock bands, so I'm anxious to see how the new compares to it.

 

From what I've heard the vocals are better, smoother and more melodic. The music still sounds great, not as intense. I comes out today, so I'll be making a trip to music store...Wal-Mart! to see if I can find it.

[Geoff]

smoother and more melodic. The music still sounds great, not as intense.

This is the impression I'm getting, which ain't too bad. I think these songs sounds pretty damn promising and I expect a lot more commercialism and less balls.

[heavyharmonies]

This and the new My Darkest Days are on sale for $9.99 at Best Buy this week, so I picked up both. I've given the Shinedown one full listen thus far. I'm not sure if it will rank above or below the last one for me. There are some absolute monster songs, but there's also some filler. The album actually starts off a bit weak for me but then ramps up nicely.

 

Now on to the MDD...

 

-Dan

[Jeff]

This and the new My Darkest Days are on sale for $9.99 at Best Buy this week, so I picked up both. I've given the Shinedown one full listen thus far. I'm not sure if it will rank above or below the last one for me. There are some absolute monster songs, but there's also some filler. The album actually starts off a bit weak for me but then ramps up nicely.

 

Now on to the MDD...

 

-Dan

 

I'll be curious to see your or someone's comparison to MDD's first CD which I really liked.

[zacharyamelie]

I bought this one yesterday and it's very good. Not sure if it's better or worst than The Sound Of Madness, that one came out 4 years ago. I still find it less intense and raw, especially in the vocals. Brent Smith has to be one of the best modern rock vocalists out there, he is crazy good on this one. Musically it is a bit safe, certainly compared to TSOM and it's more commercial sounding.

 

My fav tunes are For My Sake, Unity, Amaryllis and the disturbing I'm Not Alright. I can hear Miracle being the Second Chance hit single from this release.

 

Like Dan said the first two tracks are possibly the weakest. A bigger chorus to Bully could have made this one much better, because the rest of the song is great.

 

Something tells me 4 years is too long between releases and that this band might fade away real quick, I hope I'm wrong.

[TIM (2)]

I'm loving this one. More commercial is fine by me! As I mentioned in another thread, this humiliates the new Nickelback disc, it's so much more melodic and better written. The production is very slick and utterly flawless also. It edges-out H.E.A.T to be my fave disc of 2012 so far...

 

 

1. "Adrenaline" - Powerful opener, but missing a big hook. Decent but unspectacular. 7/10

2. "Bully" - Great verses, slightly weaker chorus but still a catchy tune. 8/10

3. "Amaryllis" - Great acoustic mid-tempo tune. Soulful vocals, lush chorus. 9/10

4. "Unity" - Huge epic anthem, similar to "Second Chance" but better. Flawless modern rock. 10/10

5. "Enemies" - Rockier tune, great riff and good songwriting make this a good one. 8.5/10

6. "I'm Not Alright" - Brilliantly written acoustic number, very melancholy but great hooks. 8.5/10

7. "Nowhere Kids" - More great writing, and a strong mid-paced rocker. 8.5/10

8. "Miracle" - Lush power ballad. Builds nicely with powerful/anthemic chorus. Killer. 9.5/10

9. "I'll Follow You" - More acoustics, very slick and sentimental song with great chorus. 9/10

10. "For My Sake" - Melodic modern rocker, probably the best mid-tempo tune. Very catchy. 9/10

11. "My Name (Wearing Me Out)" - Slightly more aggressive rocker, another great chorus. 8.5/10

12. "Through the Ghost" - Acoustic ballad, haunting stuff and great way to end. Killer chorus. 9.5/10

 

Overall I'd give this about a 9/10, and would rate it slightly above "Sound of Madness"...

[zacharyamelie]

I'm loving this one. More commercial is fine by me! As I mentioned in another thread, this humiliates the new Nickelback disc, it's so much more melodic and better written. The production is very slick and utterly flawless also. It edges-out H.E.A.T to be my fave disc of 2012 so far...

 

 

1. "Adrenaline" - Powerful opener, but missing a big hook. Decent but unspectacular. 7/10

2. "Bully" - Great verses, slightly weaker chorus but still a catchy tune. 8/10

3. "Amaryllis" - Great acoustic mid-tempo tune. Soulful vocals, lush chorus. 9/10

4. "Unity" - Huge epic anthem, similar to "Second Chance" but better. Flawless modern rock. 10/10

5. "Enemies" - Rockier tune, great riff and good songwriting make this a good one. 8.5/10

6. "I'm Not Alright" - Brilliantly written acoustic number, very melancholy but great hooks. 8.5/10

7. "Nowhere Kids" - More great writing, and a strong mid-paced rocker. 8.5/10

8. "Miracle" - Lush power ballad. Builds nicely with powerful/anthemic chorus. Killer. 9.5/10

9. "I'll Follow You" - More acoustics, very slick and sentimental song with great chorus. 9/10

10. "For My Sake" - Melodic modern rocker, probably the best mid-tempo tune. Very catchy. 9/10

11. "My Name (Wearing Me Out)" - Slightly more aggressive rocker, another great chorus. 8.5/10

12. "Through the Ghost" - Acoustic ballad, haunting stuff and great way to end. Killer chorus. 9.5/10

 

Overall I'd give this about a 9/10, and would rate it slightly above "Sound of Madness"...

 

Unity is easily becoming the best track on the album. I'm finding it hard not to give this one a 10/10 as well. Glorious!!!

 

Even after 20 or so spins, I'm still finding this one great. Probably the best modern rock release since The Sound Of Madness. If this one isn't in my top 10 at the year's end...it will have been one of the greatest years in music EVER!!!

[TIM (2)]

 

Even after 20 or so spins, I'm still finding this one great. Probably the best modern rock release since The Sound Of Madness. If this one isn't in my top 10 at the year's end...it will have been one of the greatest years in music EVER!!!

 

I just can't stop playing it. The songwriting and production are just from another planet IMO. Have you seen the video for the new single: "Unity", with the girl taking pics? That song should be HUGE if there's any justice - though I expect Nickleback's "Lullaby" will outsell it. I honestly think this will be my no.1 for the year, though I hope I'm proved wrong!

[Glen]

 

Even after 20 or so spins, I'm still finding this one great. Probably the best modern rock release since The Sound Of Madness. If this one isn't in my top 10 at the year's end...it will have been one of the greatest years in music EVER!!!

 

I just can't stop playing it. The songwriting and production are just from another planet IMO. Have you seen the video for the new single: "Unity", with the girl taking pics? That song should be HUGE if there's any justice - though I expect Nickleback's "Lullaby" will outsell it. I honestly think this will be my no.1 for the year, though I hope I'm proved wrong!

 

Yeah that song and video is/are great - that's what I posted at the beginning of this thread. I have heard every song on this ( you tube) but just waiting on my copy - was a bit late ordering, so really looking forward to a complete spin & of course hoping the production is as good as you say!!

[Nightrain]

I checked this one out yesterday, well I don't really dig SHINEDOWN as much as you guys, but I concur this one is a pretty good album. Some fave tracks here are 'Adrenaline', 'Unity', Miracle' (the best track), 'I'll Follow You', 'For My Sake', and 'Through The Ghost'. The rest are quite good at 7/10 and 'Bully' is the worst track. The production is great too, so I'm gonna go with 75% on this one

[zacharyamelie]

Being that we are melodic rock fans at heart, I'm not surprised our fav tracks are all the mid-tempo or ballads. I will admit the more aggressive songs are good, but are by no means my favs on the release.

 

Here is my score, very similar to Tim's

 

1. "Adrenaline" - 7.5/10

2. "Bully" - 8.5/10

3. "Amaryllis" - 9/10

4. "Unity" - 9.5/10

5. "Enemies" - 8/10

6. "I'm Not Alright" - 9/10

7. "Nowhere Kids" - 8/10

8. "Miracle" - 9/10

9. "I'll Follow You" - 8.5/10

10. "For My Sake" - 9/10

11. "My Name 8/10

12. "Through the Ghost" - 9/10

 

I can't really give any tune a perfect score, perfect tunes dominate my year in music, but generally this release is a stunner. 8.5/10 would be my average score for this one.

[Glen]

Being that we are melodic rock fans at heart, I'm not surprised our fav tracks are all the mid-tempo or ballads.

 

3. "Amaryllis" - 9/10 (9.25/10)

4. "Unity" - 9.5/10 (9.75/10)

6. "I'm Not Alright" - 9/10 (8.5/10)

8. "Miracle" - 9/10 (9.25/10)

9. "I'll Follow You" - 8.5/10 (8.5/10)

10. "For My Sake" - 9/10 (10/10)

11. "My Name 8/10 (9.10)

 

After one full spin through I have to say that I agree with most that the mid-tempo / ballads are the best tunes (not to say that the rockers arent good of course!). Those above are my instant favs and every one is a KILLER - Ive put my initial scores in brackets.

 

Z, the one score you have which is a bit low is 'My Name'....that is such a great track, at least a 9/10 for me.

 

'For My Sake' is excellent - a perfect modern rock song IMO.

 

Cheers

[Geoff]

After one full spin through I have to say that I agree with most that the mid-tempo / ballads are the best tunes (not to say that the rockers arent good of course!).

Sad but true, but if there is ever a modern rock album in this style where the highlights aren't the mid-tempo / ballads I will eat my balls.

 

Ordered this one last week and I expect it through the door any day now. Can't wait!

[Jez]

Really enjoying the new one and I would pretty much agree with all the above, except maybe being little more stingy in my markings. I'm rating this one at an 86'ish %, and I think I still prefer 'Sound Of Madness', albeit it slightly, over the new one. Great album though.

[Glen]

Really enjoying the new one and I would pretty much agree with all the above, except maybe being little more stingy in my markings. I'm rating this one at an 86'ish %, and I think I still prefer 'Sound Of Madness', albeit it slightly, over the new one. Great album though.

 

Not so stingy - the other tracks will drag me to around 85% too I reckon

[heavyharmonies]

This one is growing on me, the more I listen to it. It may very well pass SoM when all is said and done. The licks and choruses are memorable. Last night I kept humming a lick out loud and wasn't really thinking where it was from, and it was one of the choruses from this album.

 

It's unusual to have an artist have two very strong releases back to back without being criticized as being "samey"... but Shinedown appears to have done it. Of course, having several years between releases doesn't hurt, in that we're not fatigued by the sound.

[zacharyamelie]

Being that we are melodic rock fans at heart, I'm not surprised our fav tracks are all the mid-tempo or ballads.

 

3. "Amaryllis" - 9/10 (9.25/10)

4. "Unity" - 9.5/10 (9.75/10)

6. "I'm Not Alright" - 9/10 (8.5/10)

8. "Miracle" - 9/10 (9.25/10)

9. "I'll Follow You" - 8.5/10 (8.5/10)

10. "For My Sake" - 9/10 (10/10)

11. "My Name 8/10 (9.10)

 

After one full spin through I have to say that I agree with most that the mid-tempo / ballads are the best tunes (not to say that the rockers arent good of course!). Those above are my instant favs and every one is a KILLER - Ive put my initial scores in brackets.

 

Z, the one score you have which is a bit low is 'My Name'....that is such a great track, at least a 9/10 for me.

 

'For My Sake' is excellent - a perfect modern rock song IMO.

 

Cheers

 

To be honest the F bombs in the chorus are unecessary, those dropping the score a bit.

[KarpetRydOFunk]

Being that we are melodic rock fans at heart, I'm not surprised our fav tracks are all the mid-tempo or ballads.

 

3. "Amaryllis" - 9/10 (9.25/10)

4. "Unity" - 9.5/10 (9.75/10)

6. "I'm Not Alright" - 9/10 (8.5/10)

8. "Miracle" - 9/10 (9.25/10)

9. "I'll Follow You" - 8.5/10 (8.5/10)

10. "For My Sake" - 9/10 (10/10)

11. "My Name 8/10 (9.10)

 

After one full spin through I have to say that I agree with most that the mid-tempo / ballads are the best tunes (not to say that the rockers arent good of course!). Those above are my instant favs and every one is a KILLER - Ive put my initial scores in brackets.

 

Z, the one score you have which is a bit low is 'My Name'....that is such a great track, at least a 9/10 for me.

 

'For My Sake' is excellent - a perfect modern rock song IMO.

 

Cheers

 

To be honest the F bombs in the chorus are unecessary, those dropping the score a bit.

 

I have to agree with you. It keeps me from playing this on the job site, which results in a lot less air play than other recent releases.

[Glen]

F bombs (?!) go over my head most of the time lol. Doesn't bother me that much

[zacharyamelie]

F bombs (?!) go over my head most of the time lol. Doesn't bother me that much

 

I call that the Steel Panther Factor, once their lyrics don't bother someone than they've become immune to pretty much anything

[Glen]

F bombs (?!) go over my head most of the time lol. Doesn't bother me that much

 

I call that the Steel Panther Factor, once their lyrics don't bother someone than they've become immune to pretty much anything

 

I think what it is, is that the melody in that chorus needs an extra word in there and something like 'really' just wouldnt have worked ;-))

 

I mean, he's pissed in that song and singing 'you're really wearing me out' would just sound lame.

 

Just my opinion.......I dont think this band use excessively bad language, but in this song it works.

[Geoff]

Haven't heard the song yet, but my word we have some old folk on this forum.

[JamesEagle]

Haven't heard the song yet, but my word we have some old folk on this forum.

 

Because they don't like swearing in songs? If so, I'm one of those old folk. I like to be able to play music when the kids are around without worrying about swearing. It didn't bother me, but having young kids in the house changes your attitude on a lot of things! I also think lots of swearing is a bit sad; the occasional swear word can be effective, but frequent swearing is gratuitous and a sign of stupidity.

[Glen]

Haven't heard the song yet, but my word we have some old folk on this forum.

 

Because they don't like swearing in songs? If so, I'm one of those old folk. I like to be able to play music when the kids are around without worrying about swearing. It didn't bother me, but having young kids in the house changes your attitude on a lot of things! I also think lots of swearing is a bit sad; the occasional swear word can be effective, but frequent swearing is gratuitous and a sign of stupidity.

 

with some of the scary shit you listen to i'm surprised you play any of it around your kids

[JamesEagle]

Haven't heard the song yet, but my word we have some old folk on this forum.

 

Because they don't like swearing in songs? If so, I'm one of those old folk. I like to be able to play music when the kids are around without worrying about swearing. It didn't bother me, but having young kids in the house changes your attitude on a lot of things! I also think lots of swearing is a bit sad; the occasional swear word can be effective, but frequent swearing is gratuitous and a sign of stupidity.

 

with some of the scary shit you listen to i'm surprised you play any of it around your kids

 

Cheers mate!

 

Back on topic, this band isn't my usual cup of tea. I usually hate this type of sound, but this one really surprised me. The songs sound really good, some of the choruses are fantastic. My one gripe is the lack of solos, which may end up putting me off getting the CD. First impression is very positive though.