"Falling inside the Black" by Skillet from Comatose

"Falling in the black, slipping through the cracks, falling to the depths—can I ever go back?!"

Another of my favorite songs by Skillet that vies with "Whispers in the Dark" for top favorite, "Falling inside the Black" declares the perspective of someone who's wandered away from Christ (or, at least, has gotten a wee bit depressed), and is pleading with God to pull 'em back up.

If you're a Christian, you've have probably had a "Can you hear me?!" time in prayer at some point. This song is a tribute to those moments. If you're in one of those times, you can plea along with the song's narrator, and if you're not, you can thank God that you've been pulled out of it.

I really need to figure out who else to compare lead singer John Cooper's voice to, instead of only using Seether's singer as an example. Newsong might work, but that's a completely different musical style. Anyway, his wife Korey still makes me think of Amy Lee with a head cold for her backup vocals, even though that sounds so much worse than the reality.

The band's occassional classically trained guitarist makes a nice showing in this song, adding a trace of the symphonic to the sound that really reminds me of Three Days Grace and a bit of Within Temptation (musicwise, not vocally). That would be strange if John Cooper's singing reminded me of Sharon Den Adel's soprano…

Particularly in the "rougher" parts of the song "Falling inside the Black" feature some nice melding of different elements. The result is a very full, flushed-out sound that still wows me, especially due to Skillet being a Christian band. (Even proponents of contemporary Christian music admit that it's often of lesser quality.)

But, like most of Skillet's music, this song demonstrates the band's penchant for a "darker" (minor key) tonality. Some people find it depressing, some creepy, and some relaxing. Unless you're new to About That Song…, you've probably noticed that I'm the last type. If you're of a different type, you might want to steer clear of this song.

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Lyrics: 5/5
Music: 5/5
Vocal(s): 4/5
Overall: 9/10