"(I Hate) Everything About You" by Three Days Grace from Three Days Grace

"Only when I stop to think about it… I hate everything about you; why do I love you?

Like several songs by the Canadian band Three Days Grace, this one can make you think, That's so stup— Well… Huh. At first glance, the yelling that "I hate everything about you" but love you anyway seems really silly.

But on second thought and consideration of the song, several people I know and I find it "interesting." You'll hate things about anyone, more so in the people you love, since you know them all the better and therefore know their flaws. In this case, each party hates "everything" about the other—which really isn't that inconceivable. Negatives are easier to remember than positives.

The lyrics make it pretty obvious that the couple was involved in a sexual relationship outside of marriage without getting crass. ("Every roommate kept awake by every sigh and scream we make.") And the fights between these two evidently got violent, so if these things bother you, it's not a good song for you.

The alternative metal of this song also has a post-grunge influence, so if you don't like the musically "rough" minor key, stay away. It's one of those songs that you can recognize immediately, and Adam Gontier's vocals don't hurt it.

As of this writing, Three Days Grace allowed people to listen to this song on their MySpace page.

---

Lyrics: 4/5
Music: 4/5
Vocal(s): 4/5
Overall: 8/10

"All Around Me" by Flyleaf from Flyleaf

"I can feel You all around me…"

Say what? A Christian metal band? Yep.

Unfortunately, this song in particular suffers from that one complaint many Christians have about "Christian" bands: it doesn't point-blank mention God. Still, that's not a particular habit of Flyleaf, and the details and imagery of "All Around Me" obviously speak of an omnipresent being surrounded by angels and white light.

What this song does have is Flyleaf's continued insistence that being alive is a good thing. "I'm alive! I'm alive!" with a "heart that's healing" and "healed".

At any rate, while "All Around Me" may not be the best lyricwise that Flyleaf has produced, I think it's the best I've heard from them for music and vocals. Both meld smoothly and well-accentuate the lyrics. I can easily think them top of the post-grunge music genre.

For a debut album, I'd say Flyleaf's done pretty well to have this as their third single.

---

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

"Fully Alive" by Flyleaf from Flyleaf

Lacey Mosley would sound a whole lot more "normal" if she sang a different style. But she doesn't sing a normal style, and for me, that's part of her appeal. Even in live recordings, she sounds the same (unlike some artists).

"Telling Layla's story spoken 'bout how all her bones are broken" may open "Fully Alive" on a dark note, but "she's glad for one day of comfort only because she has suffered". It's a poignent point that having had a bad life should make you all the more appreciative of good things. In Layla's case, she's "fully alive, more than most, ready to smile and love life"—"she knows how to believe in futures".

When was the last time you found another post-grunge or heavy metal song that said that?

The music is better than average, with some involved electric guitar in there. It is a little rough on the ears, according to its post-grunge genre, but it's well put-together.

Looking for heavy metal or post-grunge music with uplifting lyrics? That's found in Flyleaf.

---

Lyrics: 5/5
Music: 4/5
Vocal(s): 4/5
Overall: 8/10

"Our Truth" by Lacuna Coil from Underworld: Evolution Soundtrack

Middle Easternish—no, goth rock—no…

Yeah, "Our Truth" is one of those style-mixing songs. But such genre-mixing suits the Underworld movies, which get a lot of bad rep from not being what they're not: run-of-the-mill movies with a straightforward genre. Now, this is a song review and not a movie one, so if you want my input on the movies, check out the post script.

With lyrics that are oddly understandable for me, considering my difficulty in comprehending Lacuna Coil, time's passing by and the song narrator is "trying to forget" what's happened, "stop the cycle, set free, run away". (I think.) No crude language appears in this song (nor any of Lacuna Coil's songs that I've heard).

However, with Italian Lacuna Coil's emphasis on "Lying to forget—telling more lies—we're raising our truth", it's humanistic with man defining truth. Christians might want to exercise caution and consider what they're singing. We are to trust in God's strength and Truth, not our own.

The music is… hard for me to describe, since I'm not the best at identifying instruments by ear, particularly with the resonating "wet" sound. It's mostly drum and electric guitar, but it's extraordinarily well melded. Even with the oddness of some of the combinations, how od they are may not hit you until later—rather like Nightwish's "Eva". Since this song also appears on Lacuna Coil's recent album Karmacode, it makes me want to check out more songs from that album.

Male singer Andrea Ferro's part in this song is limited; Cristina Scabbia sings this song, including the rather interesting opening and ending portion without words. (I'd call them "haunting", but that's the wrong word. It just… fits.) I have heard the complaint, before, that her voice is annoying; not that I agree. But it did take me some getting used to so I could vaguely follow what was being said, unaided by the non-intuitive lyrics.

I know I'm missing a major symbolic element of the music video. What I have gotten is that some children have shaken one of those little decorative snowing things and are presumably watching the band sing the song inside. What I don't get is what's up with the other, oddly-dressed and painted woman.

If you like metal and a "wet" sound to music, you might want to check this out.

---

***P.S. I would not advise seeing Underworld: Evolution, but that's because of nudity, sexual content, and horrible plotting. Oh, and even the first—rated—one has enough language and violence that it that younger children should avoid it, but it's seriously cleaner than, say, Titanic if you find the mostly inaudible 5 f-words that pop in Underworld less offensive than Titanic's… painting. As I do.

The first (rated) Underworld is a action/adventure movie with a dual Romeo and Juliet theme and somewhat-redefined vampires and werewolves as the dueling families that, if you don't mind a little gore, (comparatively) mild language (for the R rating), and a heroine in a catsuit, you might enjoy watching. Particularly if you like complicated storylines that you have to think through.

Now, I'm going to criticize some common complaints about this film: the term lycan is a form of lycanthrope, werewolf in human form, so yeah it's going to be used a lot by the vampires to refer to werewolves in human form. Also, some characters use archaic language—hey, they're 500+. Fancy that. Last time I checked, my great-grandmother used some "out of date" language, too, hm…

---

Lyrics: 4/5
Music: 5/5
Vocal(s): 4/5
Overall: 8/10

"I'm So Sick" by Flyleaf from Flyleaf

My first thought on hearing this band? …Weird voice. Interesting, but weird. My brother's response? "Girls growling doesn't sound right."

Nonetheless, this was Flyleaf's debut single as Flyleaf (they went through a few name changes while independent), and it does well demonstrate the band.

Overall, Flyleaf has dark themes, yes, as are commonly popular, nowadays. But they don't leave the narrator (or listeners) wallowing. They are Christian! Not only do they explore the dark and gritty, but hope is included in the darkness. The narrator is "so sick, infected with where [she] live[s]." But she's not content to stay there till she can "sell out [or] die out"—she wants to "live without this empty bliss, selfishness."

Moreover, the lyrics are clean, as well. My complaint is the lyrics seem more together associatively rather than as a coherent expression of their point. (And there's the grammatical problem of using to heed as if it's an intransitive verb, but hey, I'm a grammar nutcase.)

The music is the very dark, low base type that I know a lot of older adults don't like (and worries some of them). The music is very limited, but that's part of its appeal. (Evidently it's post-grunge.) Any more would be overdone, particularly considering Lacey Mosley's voice.

Lacey Mosley's voice is odd. I have no better way to describe it, but it does work well with the heavy metal she's chosen to produce. It may just be a matter of what she's done with it; I suspect her voice would sound more "normal" in a different range. She sings and she screams.

Um, yeah, about that screaming… It's at the beginning when she's saying she will "break, break", with a little more at the end. I don't particularly like screaming, but at least Flyleaf doesn't seem to throw it in there for the heck of it. It's chosen on purpose.

Also as a warning, the words tend to have odd tempos, making it a bit harder to understand what's being said, but once used to it, it can be followed. Somewhat.

Sure, I'll listen to more Flyleaf. I'd rather look to see if there's another song I might like more, though.

---

Lyrics: 4/5
Music: 4/5
Vocal(s): 4/5
Overall: 8/10

"Within Me" by Lacuna Coil from Karmacode

Lacuna Coil provided my transition/adjustment to metal pretty singlehandedly. As much as their songs tend to bewilder me, that they're not a hodgepodge is pretty obvious, regardless of how they sound. (Some songs sound like they end when they're really in the middle.) I'm willing to guess that some of the "odd" musical style is a matter of national differences: Lacuna Coil is Italian.

Their gothic metal is slower than much hard rock, and "Within Me" has a "wet" (resonating) sound, heavy on a melodic use of the electric guitar. It's a sound that might take some getting used to to like, though I've heard of people liking the music and not the vocals.

In the vocals, this song trades off between a guy and girl singing, Andrea Ferro and Cristina Scabbia. I happen to like the voices, but you may not. At least they actually seem to know how to sing, unlike many modern bands. They are a bit hard to understand unless you know what's being said, however. That's probably at least partially due to the lyrics' lack of intuitive flow.

Not that the lyrics were chosen randomly—no, they were obviously chosen on purpose to give a flowing impression of something. Maybe more, too, but I'm hopeless with symbolism. I think "Within Me" is speaking of the complexity, time, and sacrifice involved in a forging (and keeping) strong relationship. They admit it's not always easy; no, "some days it's harder. Let's face it: it's all about me". And the lyrics' vague descriptions appear to express the vagueness in trying to isolate the cause of emotions.

Overall, it's a fine clean song that can be a reminder of how selfish we can—and shouldn't—be.

---

Lyrics: 5/5
Music: 4/5
Vocal(s): 4/5
Overall: 8/10

"Cassie" by Flyleaf from Flyleaf

The first song I'd consciously ever listened to by Flyleaf, I first heard "Cassie" when Cassie came up in conversation. That's the Cassie who died in the U.S.-famous Columbine school shooting through the words, "Yes, I believe in God". (Though some people say it was an urban legend, my memory and the old news articles I can find verify her martyrdom.) I've been wanting to read her biography/diary for years.

"Cassie" is a tribute to that girl and her final words. "'Do you believe in God?' written on the bullet. Say 'yes' to pull the trigger." "And Cassie pulled the trigger."

The Christian band Flyleaf doesn't stop at offering a tribute to Cassie. Lacey Mosley directly brings the story home to where it should apply to the listener: "How many will die? I will die—I, I will say yes" (screaming the "yes", but the rest of the song is sung with a second "in the air" whispered). What happened to Cassie could easily happen to one of us, and what would we say in that event?

There are a few versions to this song. Two main ones, the regular LP one and the EP version referencing another Columbine death, Rachel, as a fellow girl who was shot for her faith that day. There's also an acoustic version of "Cassie" that can be at least listened to online.

The simple music of all the versions well-suits Lacy Mosley's unusual voice, as does the odd tempo of the lyrics.

If you can't handle post-grunge metal, check out the acoustic version of this song, at least. Flyleaf isn't just "good for Christian music", but they're good for their post-grunge genre. If you don't mind the singer's strange vocals, that is.

---

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

Edited 10/16/07 thanks to Anonymous.

"Through Glass" by Stone Sour from Come What(ever) May

I'm sure readers have by now noticed my tendancy to find the darker and angrier songs. Not that they depress me—they don't, which may be part of the reason I'm so able to like them. Well, oops, I've done it again…

"No one ever tells you that forever feels like home, sitting all alone inside your head…" Okay, so it gets repetitive, but the full chorus is at least thought-provoking, as are the verses that angrily critique the prevalence of façades, particularly in the music industry. Too often the appearance of artists is what matters in songs, rather than artist skill or song content.

Sadly, this song does blaspheme more than once in before saying "it feels like forever." It's not an angry declaration of God's name, at least, but it is a careless one. The CD Come What(ever) May also has both a censored and an explicit version. I almost like the singer's voice, but it sounds… off in some points.

The music is mostly acoustic guitar that intermittently adds more rock elements like drums and electric guitar. That melding sound decently done, but shifts are a bit abrupt, though that admittedly suits its angry tone. Stone Sour is generally considered an alternative rock or metal band, but the sound is more of a mix.

The video for "Through Glass" attacks the cardboard cutout entertainment industry that distracts viewers from reality.

---

Lyrics: *2/5
Music: 3/5
Vocal(s): 3/5
Overall: *5/10

*The song blasphemes.

"Lithium" by Evanescence from The Open Door

Evanescence unwittingly speaks of itself in "Lithium." "I can't hold on to me—wonder what's wrong with me!" sings Amy Lee, expressing many fans' feelings of The Open Door. (Lithium is a medication for bipolar that kills your ability to feel anything.)

The Lithium user's powerful cry drags me into the song, enjoying its beauty despite the blaspheme that makes me wish I had the software to edit it out. And blaspheme the song does—twice in the lyrics, once in the sung version, though the lyrics per se needn't blaspheme if God's the audience. The way Amy Lee sings it, though, leaves no doubt that He's not.

The rock music of "Lithium" is strong on the cymbals without the excessive reliance on them that plagues The Open Door. For a band known for its beautiful music, Evanescence puts a lot of irritating discord on this CD, and I'm relieved that "Lithium" is more of an exception than a follower of that.

Particularly at the beginning, a soft piano accents Amy Lee's strong voice. The shift to stronger music threatens to but doesn't (thankfully) drown out Amy Lee. It still would have been a lot better if the music was slightly muted a few decibals in a few points to keep the vocals at the fore, since they sound on a similar point on the musical scale or something. (I can't be any more precise than that in my description, but I do know it sounds wrong.)

The music video offers an interesting cinematic accomplishment of darkness produced with white. Snow and ice (and a pretty white dress) express the coldness, and Amy Lee's natural color is minimized for a virtually monochromatic effect offset by her mild colors. Some points of the video seem perhaps a bit overused, like when she's on the pillow, but it's overall a better one, I think.

As even my brother admits—and he's a heavy metal fan—it's a lovely song. But why did she have to blaspheme?

---

Lyrics: *2/5
Music: 3/5
Vocal(s): 5/5
Overall: *6/10 *The song blasphemes.