Skillet - "Save Me" / "Anchor" (2019)

(Victorious Album Cover)

As this is my first music single review, I going to try something different. Considering I don't have a whole album to go over, I may as well go into slight detail and into my thoughts about each song. And for the first single review, we have 2 songs. 

Hailing from their latest album Victorious, Skillet has pulled off all the stops to give us some really breathtaking material, being better than before. We get sent shooting 13-16 years back with "Save Me", which is very reminiscent of their Collide and Comatose days, and then we get reeled back to the present with "Anchor", which has a more calm and comforting tone.

"Save Me"
(Lyric Video)

From the start, it's almost like a slingshot all the way back to 2003-06, with the song being comparable to songs from Collide and Comatose. The song itself tells the story of a person who is stuck in a dark place, consumed by depression, calling on someone to save them from their misery so that they can live a more happy and content life. The backing track of the song has a slower tempo than typical, but it's equally as powerful. The piano is probably the biggest kick to the past, as it is very reminiscent of piano sequences prevalent in songs, Rock or not, in the early 2000's. Being able to create a certain tone through 1 instrument is exceptional, but it's emphasised by all of them.

Skillet's intention with this song is to callback to their old days and they have done that, and a whole lot more. A modernised take on old ways. Very impressive, to say the least.

"Anchor"
(Lyric Video)

With "Anchor", we get pulled back to the present with a more relaxing and emotional tone, similar to "Stars" from their previous album Unleashed. The song is powerful, but in a different way to "Save Me". It's has an big sense of emotional power, which is true considering what the lyrics mean. Lyrics obviously mean different things to other people, but I interpreted these particular lyrics as a story of power and prevalence, saying that you are able to do almost anything, with the guidance and support of someone close to you. The backing track is sensational and it makes the song what it is. It provides you with a calm start and a really powerful and emotional ending. It's a perfect balance, and it creates an indescribable atmosphere.

To draw a conclusion, I can't draw a conclusion. The feeling of the song is one of greatness and it's just impressive beyond belief. I am in awe.

Ratings
"Save Me": 7 / 10

"Anchor": 9 / 10

Skillet - Unleashed (2016)

For this review, I was contemplating reviewing either the regular edition or the deluxe edition - Unleashed Beyond. However, there's a couple of tracks in the deluxe edition which I haven't listened to enough to fully appreciate them, so I settled for the regular edition. And with the announcement of their upcoming tenth studio album Victorious, I thought it would be a good time to review Unleashed, Christian rock band Skillet's ninth studio album and, quite frankly, one of my favourite albums to date. Each song contained within this album is so different from the last, ranging from an energy-filled punch in "Famous" to a more relaxed, calm tone in "Watching for Comets".

Continuing the theme of 12 songs to an album, started with Rise, each of them is an absolute tune from start to finish. John L. Cooper's and Jen Ledger's vocals, just like Neil Fallon's in Book of Bad Decisions, are astounding and coupled with the backing tracks, add enough grit and power to songs that they become almost electrifying. Unleashed is also really cool because the music video for the song "Back From the Dead" is a direct sequel to the events of "Monster" from their album Awake. The overall feel of the album is an ecstatic one throughout, whilst offering times to calm down and chill out before getting right back into the action. "Watching for Comets" was a song I wasn't particularly fond of, at the time of release, but it has grown on me as time has progressed.

I find it funny that I, an atheist, have a Christian rock band's album listed as one of my favourites, but I do find it frustrating at times. Reason I find it frustrating is because I can't fully relate the song lyrics. However, with music as good as this, I don't see a reason as to why anyone can't enjoy it. I have been listening to Skillet for quite some time, and each of their albums is better than the last as they offer material that hits harder and harder as time goes on. I can't wait for what Skillet has in store for Victorious.

Fun Fact: In almost a couple weeks, I listened to "Feel Invincible" nearly 150 times. It felt like a lot at the time.

Favourite Tracks: All

Rating: 10 / 10

Clutch - Book of Bad Decisions (2018)

Well within the realm of unfamiliarity, and laced with all the guitar solos you could ever dream of, blues rock band Clutch offers an album that you just can't pass up. While the album's rock style isn't my favourite, Book of Bad Decisions is a jet-pack joyride from start to finish. What astounded me the most on this album is Neil Fallon's vocals. The backing tracks added a whole tonne of flavour but Fallon's majestic vocals made the songs almost 100% better. As I have not listened to other Clutch material, I'm unable to compare it with their previous material, but it has definitely given me a great impression of just how great their music is.

15 tracks, 15 astonishing tunes to fill up an hour. The type of Rock I listen to is vastly different to this, but I do have to say that these songs are otherworldly. When I first heard Fallon's vocals, I was immediately hooked (similar to me listening to Skillet on WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2010 for the first time). The lyrical content to some of these songs, like the lyrics for "In Walks Barbarella", may seem like nonsense but how they were sung added a whole lot of fruity essence to impressively performed songs. The backing tracks with the drums and guitars were pristine and the leaps into the choruses were mind-blowing; the best leaps being the ones featured in "Lorelei". However, some songs had some slight faults. Namely "How to Shake Hands" featured a guitar riff at the beginning which did not resonate well with me at all. The vocals in "How to Shake Hands" didn't quite grab my attention, either, nor did they in "Vision Quest", but other than that, they are really solid songs all-round.

As a conclusion, there really isn't much to say. As I went in, I had no idea as to what was coming my way, but I am so glad that I did listen to this album. Fun, lively, and has some absolute bangers. Highly recommend.

Favourite Tracks: All
Rating: 8 / 10

Alice in Chains - Rainier Fog (2018)

Hello, and welcome to Rock On!, a blog about my opinions and reviews on albums and the like in the Rock and Metal genres. I'd like to expand and add to this blog as much as I can. I am very interested in music and what it has to offer and I'd like to share it with the world! The material that I will be covering in the blog is music that is sorted under the Rock and Metal genres, with the albums, EPs, and singles being from a more recent point in time. I will review older music, but the majority of it will be more recent content.

Starting off in unfamiliar territory, Alice in Chains’ latest album Rainier Fog offers 10 tracks that go from good to mediocre and back to good again. As I am not familiar with Alice in Chains’ content, I didn’t exactly know what to expect but I felt let down by some parts of the album. The start and end tracks were what kept the album afloat, with them having a great blend of vocals and instruments, whilst the middle felt a bit clumsy, ranging from slightly clumsy to the vocals being completely incomprehensible. The end tracks were what saved the album from true disrepair.

From my perspective, some of the tracks, like “Drone” and “Maybe”, felt like they were going on forever, in which these tracks were not the most fun to listen to. William DuVall’s and Jerry Cantrell’s vocals felt in complete contrast to the guitar riffs and sequences that they were playing in these songs. The worst song for vocals was “Deaf Ears Blind Eyes” as they were completely drowned out by the guitars and drums. Absolutely no connection was felt between me and the song; it felt mediocre at best. That’s not to say that they were all bad. Tracks like “Rainier Fog”, “Never Fade”, and “All I Am” were a pleasant experience and overall great tracks. The instruments worked well, the vocals worked well, and I felt myself tapping my feet and, at some points, headbanging to them as they offered some pretty good material to listen to.

Overall, Rainier Fog is an average album with some less than average songs. Some of the material perked the album up but most of it felt prolonged and didn’t need to be as long as it did. As I said before, not all tracks were bad. Particularly the end tracks were the best, and are what saved it from being a real disaster, in my opinion. It's not the best album I've listened to but for what it's worth, it was not bad.

Favourite tracks: "Rainier Fog", "Never Fade", "All I Am"
Rating: 5 / 10