Godsmack - IV (11 tracks) +Album Reviews +Used CD available for Swap

A surprisingly new and improved Godsmack

A. Stutheit | Denver, CO USA | 04/26/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Following up 2003's "Faceless," which received a mixed critical response, Godsmack release their fourth full length disc. "IV" was advertised by the band as being a more "experimental" album. Some skeptical people think the world will see Jesus' second coming before Godsmack make an experimental album. But Godsmack have definitely proved their cynics wrong, because this album does sound quite a bit different than "Faceless," 2000's "Awake," and 1998's self-entitled debut. There are several melodic songs on here, so "IV" has a somewhat gentle, tuneful, and harmonic edge. Thus, this album might not have as many good, heavy riffs as before, but it is definitely easier to swallow than `Smack's previous discs. Plus, frontman Sully Erna gets to actually sing on several of these tracks, and his lyrics are (for the most part) solidified.

The album opens with two somewhat disappointing but tolerable songs, "Livin In Sin" and "Speak." The former song kind of goes no where, and "Speak," which is the single, has some good hooks, but it sounds a little too familiar. But then things start to look up. "The Enemy" is a dark, "Awake"-esque song, with catchy, hard-hitting riffs over a lurching rhythm.

Track four, "Shine Down," is where the melody first makes an appearance. This song does have a few guitar riffs, but Sully's singing voice (which is actually pretty good) prevents it from being very heavy. A wailing harmonica solo, which wouldn't be out of place on a country music or Led Zeppelin album, is also included here.

"Hollow" is a somewhat pretty song with non-threatening, acoustic guitar strums and crooning. It might be a b-side from Godsmack's 2004 unplugged EP, "The Other Side," except this song also includes some female backing vocals.

The next two songs, "No Rest For The Wicked" and "Bleeding Me," return the album to Godsmack's heavy, riff-centered roots, but "Voodoo Too" is again melodic. It's a catchy little song (which is a sequel to 1998's hit single, "Voodoo") with tribal drums and a tasty (albeit brief) guitar solo.

"Temptation" is maybe the best of the heavy songs. It falls into a deep, thrashy groove and is backed by strong, churning riffs.

Finally, "Mama" and "One Rainy Day" are the last two songs. "Mama" is sort of in the same vein as "Shine Down" (it has more of Sully's very decent singing), and "One Rainy Day" is a dreary, depressing (though somewhat meandering) ballad which features very docile instruments and vocals.

All told, "IV" is easily Godsmack's most mature, well balanced, well-written, consistent, and all around best release to date. It's good for old-school fans, because there is plenty of headbanging-worthy material here, but you should also definitely check it out if you aren't a fan of their first three discs. This is a new side of Godsmack, one which we haven't heard before, and one which is significantly grown up and improved. Isn't it amazing what a little melody can do for a band?"

Tied with the self-titled album for best of the four.

Nate McCooey | Lockport, NY United States | 04/26/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Approximately three years removed from the release of their third studio album "Faceless," the boys in Godsmack are back at it again, this time with "IV" (Four). Now, while this may hardly be the most creative name for the new album (I thought the same exact thing when Earshot released "Two," Staind put out "Chapter V," and Sevendust came out with "Next," but that's not the point) , the album itself is chock-full of great tunes and is classic Godsmack. Once again, the guys prove that they are able to make powerful music on both ends of the spectrum, whether it be a soft, acoustic tune such as "Hollow" (reminiscent of their work on their EP "The Other Side, released in 2004) or a hard rocker like first single "Speak." A lot of bands today try this, and most of them fail miserably. Personally, I think Godsmack and Sevendust are the only two modern rock bands who pull it off with any degree of success.

Although "Livin' In Sin" isn't the greatest opener, it's still a decent song with a catchy vibe that grows on you after a while. Three tracks in is "The Enemy," and is it just me or does this song sound an awful lot like "Bad Religion (from the self-titled album) Part II" in terms of guitar parts? Of course that's not necessarily a bad thing and while it may just be the weakest song on the album from a lyrical standpoint, I think that may be what the guys were going for here, as it's more of a "f*ck you" type song than anything else. After that comes "Shine Down" (not in any way related to the other great band known as Shinedown), and when you hear the harmonica at the beginning of this song, at first you're like "Huh? That can't work in a Godsmack song." But it does, and the harmonica solo halfway through is amazing. This is the first track on the album where Godsmack demonstrate their more "bluesy" side that several other reviewers on here have alluded to.

The aforementioned "Hollow" may be the best acoustic song the band has done to date, and the additional vocals provided by Lisa Guyer are nothing short of amazing. As for the sequel to "Voodoo" from the self-titled album, "Voodoo Too," I wouldn't say it's as great as the original but definitely a worthy successor. I especially like the chorus line, "Have you ever wondered why in a dream you can touch a falling sky?" I don't really care to provide reviews of the rest of the songs on this album, but rest assured that they are all good in their own ways. Having bought my copy at Target, the hidden bonus track that I was treated to is called "I Thought," and what a wonderful song it is. I thought it was cool how Godsmack put one track that was exclusive to copies of this album from certain stores, i.e. "I Thought" from Target and "Safe and Sound" from Best Buy. I am currently unaware of any others. (Although I do know that you get a free Godsmack T-shirt if you buy this album from Circuit City ths week, haha.)

Now, to all of the haters out there who say that Godsmack is nothing more than an Alice in Chains clone, with all due respect, please take your heads out of your asses. Godsmack have always been strongly influenced by the music of AIC (the band members themselves admit this), but that does not mean they are "ripping them off" in any way. If you cannot tell the difference between a Godsmack song and an AIC song, I strongly suggest you get your hearing checked (this coming from a huge Alice fan). There are similarities between the two bands, yes, but then again no band today is 100% original when it comes to sound and style.

And to the guy who said that nobody can name an AC/DC album other than "Back in Black"...hmmm, let's see..."Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap," "The Razor's Edge," "For Those About To Rock...," "Highway To Hell," "Let There Be Rock," "Fly On The Wall," do you need me to go on? And if you truly believe that the only AC/DC songs played on the radio are those from their masterpiece "Back in Black," I strongly suggest you get, well, a radio. And last but certainly not least, as far as Pearl Jam is concerned, they had their heyday over a decade ago, and are merely a shell of the great band they once were. Their last album, "Riot Act," was a steaming pile of cow dung, aside from the great single that was "I Am Mine." Starting with that album, Eddie Vedder for whatever reason decided it would be a good idea to channel the spirit of Rage Against The Machine and turn PJ into, yet another, whiny political band. Pardon me for asking this, but whatever happened to rock bands just playing rock music without trying to bash people over the heads with their own sanctimonious political agendas?

Oh well, thankfully there's still at least one band we can count on not to do that. That band would be Godsmack.

"

Godsmack stays innovative with release of IV

Eddie Lancekick | Pacific Northwest | 10/04/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Many times in the rock band realm, bands try and expand their direction and vision. They try to change the tempo, the sound, and anything to try and garner more of the wind that their sails have captured in the past. Many don't make it as fans that want more of the same formula often times sneeze at the change in direction. With IV, Godsmack still retains some signature sounds in sonic dire that is poetic and solid, while taking the edge off a bit here and there that was so prominent in past recordings. In all reality, it is not much change as we have seen this band progress to this point since the release of their self-titled debut album in 1998.

IV again finds stoic front man Sully Erna leading his band into yet another successful venture. On IV, the band has a very good approach at the guitar work, playing some catchy, dark intros that quickly capture your attention, but don't bore you with repetitive play. The first track is "Living in Sin" and does just that, quickly breaking into a heavy, groove laden track that has some excellent atmospheric touches to it. "Speak" is very close to the Godsmack from before, which comes at you with a brash but not obnoxious sound. Sully drives the point home in the theme of the lyrics with some crisp vocal efforts. What is cool about the edgy rockers they have is that they are taking on a deeper; more rolling feel as opposed to a quick drum-smashing track. "The Enemy" is another great one for that category as well. "Shine Down" is a slower, harrowing track that has some haunting yet still hopeful sounds to it. This is backed up with some great lead guitar work. "Hollow" is an almost Arthurian sounding track that has great backing vocals for a chorus. Poetic in style, its one of my favorites on the album.

The album has a total of 11 tracks and is topped off at the end by one called "One Rainy Day" that clocks in at over seven minutes long. Rain starts out with some pattering rain sounds and then slowly marches into a slow, almost blues sounding track that is to say the least, somewhat mystical. Godsmack isn't smashing down barriers here, but they're cutting through slowly and before you know it, they are off and running."

Their best album to date...

Daniel T. Maddock | Denver, CO | 04/27/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"With IV, Godsmack has definitely matured in their song writing, lyrics, structure, and sound. I consider myself a fan of theirs, however with their last full length cd, Faceless, I was growing tired of their sound-which had started to become repetitive. IV has changed my opinion (with exception of the guitar solos). To prove this band is expanding their sound, simply listen to Shine Down or Mama. Some would argue they have become "soft", however there are plenty of signature "Godsmack heavy songs" on this cd to satisfy the heavy rock Godsmack fan.

Pros:

*More varied in song variety than any previous albums.

*Better sounding. The mixing and production is much better than the last album.

*Lyrically, one of Sully's best efforts; he has expanded his range (perhaps since he gave up drinking and smoking)

*As Sully has been saying in the press, the new album is less "metal" and more "heavy rock" with "bluesy" elements to it. I consider this a positive change and a sign of growth.

Cons:

-The hidden track at the end is way too good to have to fast forward through 5 minutes of dead air to get to! I wouldn't normally be annoyed with this as hidden tracks typically are throw aways anyway. But in Godsmack's case it is one of the best songs on the album but a pain to get to! Whoever thought hidden tracks was a "cute" idea should have bamboo choutes ran up his/her fingernails! It's a hassle to get to the song.

-Guitar Work: Rombola uses the same tired wah guitar solos using the blues riff on virtually every song on every GSmack album. I like Tony Rombola but his guitar chops have not seemed to grow with the rest of the band. Some solos sound like they were ripped off from previous Godsmack songs. He should take note of guys like Mark Tremonti (formerly of Creed) who took a few years off prior to forming Alter Bridge so that he could take lessons from guitar wizz, Troy Stetina. His chops were heads and tails improved on the Alter Bridge cd compared to his work with Creed. Tony should take note.

-Arrangement: A very weak opening track. Livin in Sin is probably the weakest song on the entire album. If anything, it should have been placed in the middle or toward the end of the album. Temptation would have been an excellent opening track.

Overall, I'm very very pleased as the band has made great progress. I'd give this 8.5 out of 10 stars.

"

Embarrased

Stephen Ramsdell | Baghdad, Iraq | 07/02/2006

(2 out of 5 stars)

"That is what you should be, I don't know... Maybe I am the only one left in the world with this bands first album, but I dare you to compare the two... I did it to prove a point to a friend. Listen to the original "voodoo" and then "voodoo II" it is just a crying shame!!!"

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	Godsmack IV Genres: Alternative Rock, Pop, Rock, Metal Track Listings (11) - Disc #1 Livin In Sin Speak The Enemy Shine Down Hollow No Rest For The Wicked Bleeding Me Voodoo Too Temptation Mama One Rainy Day flexfield5
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