I was worried ATTENTION ATTENTION would ruin all other Shinedown albums for me. I could not have been more wrong. This is one of the Shinedown albums that I've heard very little songs from, but they all sounded super familiar. And not in a bad, samey, generic way. In a way that made me feel like I was home, in a way that comforted me. I had an absolute blast listening to this one for the first time, and I can't wait to come back to it many times in the future.

This gets a LOT of points for creative storytelling. SF/F is by go-to genre for stories, and this obviously fits right in. I appreciate that aspect. One thing that I was a bit disappointed with is that I didn't think the album actually told the story super well. It seems most of the story is told with a series of comic books and not the actual music, which seems to operate almost as a supplement for fans of the comics. I could be completely wrong, but this is the assumption I'm making just from ... read more

I enjoyed this one. It can be a little repetitive at times, but not always and even when it was, I didn't mind. The drums seriously lacked some creativity, playing the same line in almost every single song on this album. It's fun, but it gets old after 3 or 4 songs. I'm a fan of rock music that incorporates that give it an old-fashioned feel, and this definitely falls under that category. I probably won't be coming back to this album, but there were several tracks from it I saved.

I had a really hard time with this one. One thing I'd like to say first is that even though I've heard people say it all sounds very similar and there is little variety (and I agreed with this after my first listen), I don't believe that's true. Instrumentally, it's got quite a bit of variety going on. It's definitely not the most diverse thing I've ever heard, and at times it can feel like I'm listening to a song I heard earlier on the album, but it's not often. Now for why I'm rating this so ... read more

This is one of the most consistent albums I've come across. I enjoy every single song about the same amount, with a couple exceptions that are better than others (looking at you, Alive). This is another album I thought I wouldn't enjoy as much coming back to it after having grown up, but I'm proved wrong once again.

This was a trip down memory lane. This album was a huge influence on my music tastes growing up. I expected to come back to it for the first time in years and dislike it. That's not the case though. I found myself enjoying it way more than I thought. The lyrics are super cringey at times and the singer is an absolute asshole, but I think the band accomplishes what they set out to do very well. It's supposed to be some kind of mix between post-hardcore and pop punk, and I think it does a good ... read more

This album impressed me a ton. I'm not sure how true this statement rings, but when I think of a punk band I think of basic simplicity. Just some good fun hating on the government and being the black sheep. Typical rebellious teenager drama carried over into early adulthood. Which is fine and all, and I can appreciate it, but it's not usually music I'd look at critically and be impressed with what I see. This blew that preconception out of the water. While it's certainly not the deepest thing ... read more

This begins with quite a shift in sound from their previous work. Where previously their songs have been very light and had recently started to get very poppy, Radioactive gives off a very dystopian vibe not just in the name but in the sound. The instruments are all very distorted and give off a very cyperpunk-esque feel. This changes immediately with the next track though, and they go back to the sound that dominated It's Time (even including that title track in this EP, which I feel is an odd ... read more

This is what I've been waiting for. In the past I've been kind of just waiting for the EPs to end, counting down the tracks I have left. This was the first time I've been engaged from beginning to end so far. I really wish some of these were on Spotify. Good EP overall, and I expect them to keep getting better.

This is much better than their previous two EPs. It's also the moment where they have developed and mostly fleshed out the type of music I enjoy by them. I've definitely heard better pop rock, but I've also heard worse. I'm very excited to get to their next couple records and hear a bunch of old favorites.

I really love this album. Theory of a Deadman had always been a band on my radar. My dad listened to them a lot as I grew up so I knew their more popular songs. When this album came out, I was just getting into the habit of listening to albums so I knew I had to pick it up. I wasn't disappointed, and it caused Theory to become one of my favorite bands. Looking at it 3 years later, I feel much the same way. It's a super fun pop rock album, with not a single bad song in my opinion. Most of them ... read more

This one began with a big stylistic change from their previous sound. I was a huge fan of this change. Then after a couple songs they went back to their normal style, which I understand but don't really enjoy. It was super disappointing for me. It did pick up at the end though with a super catchy blues song. I feel like I'm really teetering on the edge with this band. They are so close to putting out something that I truly enjoy. I'll be keeping up with them in the future.

This was alright. It obviously takes a lot of influence from country, especially vocal style. Which I don't mind. It adds something unique to the album that keeps me interested throughout the whole thing. I don't have a whole lot else to say. I'm going through their discography as part of a project to prep for S.H.I.T. Fest, and I'm not hating it.

I'm really not sure why I didn't enjoy this way more than I did. It's got pretty much everything I want in my rock music. Looking at formula alone, I should love it, and it should be one of my favorites. But for some reason it just did not click with me, and I can't explain why.

To start off on a high note, I LOVED the clean vocals, and the way they meshed with the musical style they are going for on this album. It's exactly the type of light rock I would enjoy on a summer day. However, I have a hard time getting over the screaming. I don't usually prefer that kind of music anyway, and I don't like the way it's paired with the music on this album. I definitely understand how others would, and I applaud the band for going that direction because it's unique (at least to ... read more

I liked the versions of the songs on this EP more than the ones on the actual album. Which shouldn't come as a surprise considering one of my main issues with the album was over-production, which doesn't really show in an unplugged EP. However, I only slightly enjoyed this one more, which makes me believe maybe the over-production didn't play as big a part in my dislike of the album as I thought it did. Either way, this wasn't really my thing.

While I certainly understand the appeal of this kind of production style, it's just too much for me. It distracts me from the actual music. The vocal style is also not something I'm a fan of. She sounds very immature when she sings, which I get is the vibe she's going for but it doesn't feel like it belongs with the type of hard rock instrumentation going on. One positive note is that some of the beats in this album were very nice and well-written. Whoever is behind that is doing an incredible ... read more

This was a decent EP. Nothing stood out a whole lot, except the tracks that sound like they might have a bit more of a country influence. Strangely enough, I enjoyed those ones the most, despite not liking country music at all. I think it's that her voice seems to fit that style more.

This one didn't strike me as much as the others. It's not bad by any means, and I see myself coming back to it, but I much prefer Weapons and Axiom.

I really enjoyed this record as well. I know I've listened to this one before, but it was forgettable at the time. Now I don't know how I ever thought that. My music tastes must have really changed over the last year. This one flows together very well, even better than Weapons. It's got some really rockin' tracks, as well as a masterfully done slow one at the end. This is pretty much exactly what I expect out of this band now. I should have payed closer attention to them in the past. I won't be ... read more