Us and Them in Bloomington, MN

Shinedown
's 2003 single
"Fly from the Inside"
blended atmospheric
Alice in Chains
references with a lumbering
post-grunge
sound similar to
Nickelback
. The debut LP
Leave a Whisper
offered more of the same -- a satisfactory sound as
rock
radio filler, but ultimately pretty calculated. But it became a hit, certainly due in part to radio support, but mostly because of the Jacksonville, FL-based band's reputation as a great live act. The quartet played something like 400 shows over the course of 2003 and 2004, and that gelling process is unquestionably a factor in the more realized
hard rock
sound of the 2005 follow-up,
Us and Them
.
frontman
Brent Smith
channels
Chris Cornell
(or at least
Alter Bridge
's
Myles Kennedy
) on opener
"The Dream,"
but the song's
grunge
theft is forgiven by its airtight groove.
have been road-tested, and they prove it again on
"Trade Yourself In"
and
"Yer Majesty."
Unfortunately, for most of
the band still relies too much on formula.
"Save Me"
"Beyond the Sun"
are direct descendants of
3 Doors Down
. They didn't invent ploddingly urgent
either, but provided the most recent examples with their string of early-2000s hits. Elsewhere,
"I Dare You"
is like a formula and an
experiment
all in one, suggesting light
pop
like
the Calling
even as gritty guitars churn up the reverb. It's a confusing song that doesn't do anything for the album's continuity.
definitely have a rewarding
album in them somewhere. But after all its populist concessions,
isn't it. ~ Johnny Loftus