Sevendust start this album with a pretty hard rocking track in “Hero”. The fact with this track is that the song does not really lift individuals up like previous Sevendust tracks. It is middle of the road and does not enjoy the hooks that are needed to really bring individuals in by the barrelful. “Ugly” is a track that relies a little more on the creation of a vocal harmony, and it is by doing this that Sevendust ekes out their first track on “Next”. The quicker tempo of “Pieces” will bring the metalheads on board, but the lack of a solid hook during the track will keep listeners away.
At some point, the guitars recall early Soundgarden, but this is little consolation for anyone besides the Korn clique (the vocals that present themselves during this track, as well as some of the other tracks, will bring individuals into tying together Korn and Sevendust). Sevendust gets back on their high horse with “Silence”, another track that moderates the harder sound of the guitar and drum dynamic with a very soulful brand of singing.
This is where the band really became famous and this is where the act continues to succeed. While individuals cannot blame Sevendust for trying to come up with different styles at points, there are few in the way of successes on this disc when the band breaks out of their shell. “This Life” starts off slowly, and when the guitars kick in, there is little chance that Sevendust doesn’t have the next “The Reason” on their hands. This is simply the song that all hard rockers, Goths, and metalheads will want played at their highschool proms next year. The smoothed-out guitars and slower composition virtually guarantees it. The band speeds things up for their “Failure”, but they make a concerted effort to keep the same soulful and emotive sound of “This Life”. This means that the vocals have a distinctly Living Colour meets Lenny Kravitz sound to them. They are contextualized well during the track, and give Sevendust yet another style that they can create during this disc. Sevendust has been crafting music for a decent amount of time, and to hear that the band is still able to come up with interesting styles and approaches shows that the band’s career need not have the curtain pulled on it as of this juncture. Give it a go.
Top Tracks: This Life, Failure
Rating: 5.5/10
[JMcQ]
Sevendust – Next / 2005 Winedark / 11 Tracks / http://www.sevendust.com / http://www.winedarkrecords.com / Reviewed 05 June 2006