After a two-year hiatus, Staind makes an impressive return with its new album “14 Shades of Grey.”
Staind broke out on the national scene with the pounding drive of its debut album, “Dysfunction,” and cemented its reputation with insightful lyrics and melody on 2001’s “Break the Cycle.” On “14 Shades of Grey,” Staind delivers an album highlighting the deeply personal thoughts of singer Aaron Lewis and the inventive soundscapes of guitarist Mike Mushok.
The album’s first single, “Price to Play,” rolls along with a stomping drum beat and heavy down-tuned guitars. It sounds more like early songs the band put out and should appeal to “Dysfunction” purists and those who enjoy the grittier sounds of Korn or Mudvayne as well. The song also boasts a hard-core, screaming style toward its end – a technique Lewis hasn’t used much since the band’s early days.
“How About You” shows how diverse Staind has become throughout the years, and the song drips with a “Sunday Bloody Sunday”-era, U2 kind-of-vibe. The song may be rooted in classic rock, but it doesn’t sound dated at all. “How About You” is a refreshing departure for the band, capturing the passion and essence which made the classic bands so great. The lyrics are a heartfelt ode to sacrifice, and Lewis is sincere when he sings, “Everyone plays the hand they’re dealt and learns to walk through life themselves/Not everything in life is handed on a plate, when people think your words are true, it doesn’t matter what you do/I sold my soul to get here, how ’bout you?”
“So Far Away” is a largely acoustic track, delivered in stunning fashion. Everything comes together perfectly on this song, and it has no weak points; the songwriting, as well as the mesh of heavy and acoustic guitars on the chorus, couldn’t have been arranged any better. People who were fans of the electric version of “Outside” from “Break the Cycle” will likely consider this song to be one of the gems on “14 Shades of Grey,” and rightly so. Lewis’ lyrics come across as poetry, and in his delivery the listener gets the impression that he opens himself up, scars and all, for everyone to see. He possesses one of the most distinct and honest voices in modern hard rock.
Another standout track, and one that may be somewhat of a surprise, is the track “Layne,” an obvious tribute to fallen Alice in Chains singer Layne Staley. Most of today’s popular heavy bands have borrowed from – or, in some cases, just blatantly ripped off – AIC with no acknowledgment the band was an influence. It’s refreshing and respectful for a band like Staind to pay tribute to a singer and a band which helped to shape its sound. On the track, Lewis does his best Staley impersonation and the resemblance is dead-on. The music doesn’t quite capture the magic of AIC, but as far as homage goes, it doesn’t get any better.
“Yesterday,” sounds like it could have been written around the time of “Break the Cycle,” but lyrically, it snarls with the kind of content that made so many people identify with the band when it debuted. The song isn’t spectacular, but it’s catchy and will probably be one of the tracks which makes it into steady radio rotation. The only problem with the song is it sounds like the obligatory “blame my parents for everything wrong with my life” tripe. This has become a Staind trademark, and while many people might identify with the track, the subject matter is getting old. Lewis is a better songwriter than that, and should bury this issue and find something else to draw from.
“Zoe Jane” comes across as sappy, but because it was put on the album as a tribute to Lewis’s daughter, and because it shows that Staind has the musicianship to pull off a good ballad, it works.
Staind has established itself as one of the premiere acts in hard rock today, and this album certainly backs up that reputation. The band has one of the best voices in hard rock with Lewis, and while it would be nice to see the group more thoroughly revisit some of the early sounds that dominated “Dysfunction,” it doesn’t sound like Staind is going to be backtracking any time soon. This release runs through a slew of emotions and a different story, if you will, on each track.
This CD was provided for review courtesy of CD Warehouse.
