GODSMACK | When Legends Rise | Album Review

For 20 years, Godsmack has entertained legions of fans who have tuned in to rock radio and heard a Godsmack song or are massive fans of what they create. And to anyone new approaching the name for the first time, that is not an understatement because Godsmack is a band that rock radio loves, like Three Days Grace, Disturbed, and Shinedown. Any time they release new material, it seems like all of the rock stations come together collectively in order to get the latest single shipped and played within a thirty minute period of time. There's no doubt anyone can bring up against this. Godsmack do a good job at pleasing rock radio as well as pleasing their own fanbase with album that have been consistent in tone throughout the twenty years after their self-titled debut. Some of these are done well like that aforementioned debut, "Faceless", and "1000HP", but there are other albums in their discography like "Awake" and "The Oracle" that feel like more of the same. Now, Sully Erna and the rest of the band are trying to finally tread a new course with a new album, "When Legends Rise", their seventh effort overall. This album is being described by Erna as a "reinvention" and a "new chapter" for the band, with producer Erik Ron helping by making this dynamically much different than other works. For many fans, this will come as a surprise and it's something that countless bands are doing these days in order to prove they can take on new styles of hard rock and music in general. I think this did have some potential as Godsmack hasn't really had an album that has fired on all the cylinders that are possible to light up, so let's examine how this turned out for them.

"Bulletproof", the album's first single was released back in February and it set the tone of what to expect throughout the rest of the album it was promoting. Taking a quick examination of this song, you can tell that this is something completely unique to their other works as it features more of a radio-ready rock sound than ever before. This song feels perfect for radio airwaves and it's obvious that this went over well with rock radio as it is garnering tons of plays. It's undoubtedly a good characteristic to describe this song, but it's also a weaker one as well because lyrically, there isn't much to differentiate itself from other tracks and in a way it feels like music one of those lesser known independent rock bands would make. Luckily, there still exists the good qualities from this track such as a great performance from Sully Erna and the quieter verses which have some interesting soundscapes to them. As for the disc's second released single, the title track, there really isn't much that is different from the style "Bulletproof" features, and it's actually one of this album's weaker tracks. It's not a very good sign when the title track of an album is considered a weaker moment as title tracks have a certain level of expectation to them, but this doesn't really do that and feels mediocre. Not bad by any means, but it really sticks to a formulaic verse-chorus structure that doesn't really attempt to pull you in. 

And that is what can be said about much of what you'll hear on "When Legends Rise". It isn't that Godsmack is completely reinventing everything about their sound as much as it is lessening what made them recognizable and trying to stick to a formula with only few attempts to deviate. That sounds like a harsh statement to make but this album really isn't terrible; it's just simply OK. I don't think this album will have any lasting power as time goes on, even with its more solid tracks. "Every Part Of Me" and "Take It To The Edge" are examples of this radio-ready style working a lot better here and while there is some formula present in these two songs, I'm very certain that these two are the standouts because both have a good pace to them, especially "Every Part Of Me" with its opening riff that sounds pretty cool. Another track that will definitely get some attention is "Under Your Scars" which is the softest track on the album with mostly a focus on the piano and orchestra, but it works fine here. "Say My Name" is material that will make longtime fans happy and if this album doesn't go over well with the fanbase, this will be the track that they consider their best, but like with much of this album, I don't see really much of an impact. Whenever you have songs like "Unforgettable", "Someday", and "Let It Out" which do not stay present in the mind for a very long time, that fact is very clear to see. 

Once again I will state clearly that I do not dislike this album. It's a good album for what it is and it still has some merit worthy material featured within, but most of this album's material is torn from the same fabric as other bands and it will probably not leave an impact like other albums. It's a little bit disappointing because I wanted to like this album a bit more than I did after seeing how well a myriad of acts have been able to change up their sound in the past, however, besides "Bulletproof" and a few other tracks, it feels like the band cruised a little bit instead of made something fully worth admission. As for the fans of this band, I don't really know if you will enjoy this album or not. I may be wrong on that but if you're wanting to look at the reviews for this album from the fanbase, expect the negativity to be present in some way. However, if you are looking for something that does have a similarity to other bands and isn't the best possible music to listen to but still is decent as an overall album, this will be up your alley. Hopefully, on future material from this band, there will be something that has a better grip on your ears than this album. I'll treat this as a stepping stone, so I hope that this is a band that will deliver on making a stronger album after this. Still worthy of purchase, but these legends in rock music did not give us their best work to date. 

RATING: 6/10

What did you think about the record? Was it good? Was it bad? Let me know in the comments below. And of course, these are only my opinions. If your opinions are different, awesome! If they're similar, then that's great, too. So, don't hesitate- comment to me about it down below. Take care.