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Well, after being somewhat disappointed by Global Warning's last release,
Digital Black, I was hopeful that with this much-hyped
new album we would get a taste of what the band was really capable
of. Upon seeing the album cover you can't help but notice that the artwork is 150
times better on this release. However, looks can sometimes be deceiving. The music within,
while an improvement over their last release, just doesn't really do it for me. The band
continues in that Eternal Decision meets Godsmack direction, but does it with even less flair
than either of the before-mentioned bands. The music is very heavy and there are some shining
moments, but there is too much filler that just bogs this thing down.
The opening song
"Away from Me" is a decent opener that doesn't impress much, but shows some attitude that the
band sometimes missed in their last album. However, the next song "Bring it On" just makes
me cringe. The vocals grate on my every last nerve! To top it off, they sometimes cram
too many lyrics in a line and it just sounds awkward. The third song "Chasm" is one of those
shining moments. The haunting guitar intro and opening riff are very cool and start to get my hopes up. The vocals are in mega-Eternal Decision/James Hetfield mode here,
but sound good. That same guitar sound in the intro
ends the song in great fashion. As the album goes on, there
are other standout songs like "A Deafening Silence" and "Empty Inside", but for the most
part I just can't say that there is much that grabs my attention. The band still goes after
that monotonous sound that plagued Digital Black. After the disc is over you just find
it hard to listen again because there is not much that makes you want to hit play again.
Lyrically, the band continues to let their faith shine forth in a bold
way. The lyrical content of this disc seems to deal alot
with personal struggles that we all face from day to day and
how the only real solution is Christ. "A Deafening Silence" deals with apathy and how
the world is getting worse because Christians won't get out of their Lazy-Boys and stand up
for what's right. Then "Empty Inside" deals with lust and how it never satisfies. Pretty
decent lyrics overall. Another good plus is the production. The band spent good money
and it shows. The band produced and mixed the album with Floyd Reitsma, who has worked
with bands like Audio Slave, Dave Matthews, and Otep. It was also recorded in 3 different
studios in Seattle that have seen the likes of Alice in Chains, Queensryche, Nirvana,
Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and others pass through their doors. So,
when you take a step back...artwork is much better, lyrics are solid, production is very good,
music is heavier, vocals are more aggressive, and they incorporate more variety...sounds
very promising right? I just don't think these songs are well-written enough
to make much of a splash in this genre. It's too littered with bands that do this
much better. Heavy doesn't equal greatness. Global Warning
just needs more excitement to them. Something that kicks you in
the butt and makes you wanna go crazy headbanging or something. This is slow to mid-paced
heavy alterno-metal with a sound that lacks the overflowing passion and convincability
that allows me to show much interest. (Review by Matt)
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