New Outlook. New Life
Posted April 29, 2009
By Nathan,
Over the past ten years Thousand Foot Krutch has been among the most popular, and successful, rock groups in Christian music. Channeling similar success to a side project is not easy but Thousand Foot Krutch band mates Trevor McNevan and drummer Steve Augustine have turned ite an achievement with its first entthe third FM static installment moving into the top 25 download albums on Itunes and being labeled "Rockers on the Rise" by Billboard. What is the secret to Dear Diary’s success? It could be that FM Static has mixed the right chemistry.
The plot of the album isn’t that impressive, but then again how many other CD’s do you own actually contain a story line? Based off a fictional story from McNevan’s brain we find the main character entering a new town with a surprisingly optimistic outlook on his supposedly final year of high school. Predictably, he hits it off with a rocket-moving Christian girl (who sounds remarkably like Tricia Brock of Superchic[k]) at his school. As things start to look even more optimistic, tragedy things arise in the from Brock’s character’s family, and our hero starts to doubt if God loves him. Naturally there is this big musical number at senior dance ending the musical on a less satisfying note but, overall the cliché concept album does take its stab into the dark on complex issues that FM Static previously never dared to explore on previous shallow efforts.
Instead of sticking with fast paced punk tunes, FM static explores the genre in a verity of ways without lowering the catchy quotient that is essential to such albums. The opener “boy moves to town with optimistic outlook” isn’t driven by blaring guitars but rather by charm generated from the ordinary guitar intro driving the infectious and smooth tune. The hardest tune on Dear Diary is the aggressive rock track “Boy Meets Girl (And Vice Versa)” which does use some big riffs which is a little out of place but it does match the moment in the concept. The first six tracks are upbeat and all contain catchy beats and in the case of "Man Whatcha Doin'?" the music is brilliant. Highlighting the first bundle of songs is the incredibly fun upbeat “The Voyager Of Beliefs” which sports Brock’s vocals which, along with McNevan, moves along quickly and outstandingly.
One problem with the album is the song structure. The first several songs represent nearly flawless punk tracks but after “The Voyage Of Beliefs” the CD goes down a quieter and solemn path. The lone exception is the “The Shindig (Off To College)” which is a disappointing punk rock/dance beat that falls short of being an eye-pooping finale. Both good ballads, “Her Father’s Song” and “Dear God”, have light hints of punk/pop but neither is emotional enough to be memorable epics. However “Take Me As I am” is an artist song which progresses musically, and succeeds at catching the listener’s attention without the use of a fast-paced beat.
What really separates Dear Diary from other FM static albums is the way that God is weaved through the songwriting. Instead of occasionally mentioning Christ’s name (which the album does several times) to remain a recognizable Christian artist or simply devote entire songs speaking of the Lord, Dear Diary uses everyday experiences and humor to make God relevant. For example, in the middle of a girl/guy cliché (“Boy Meets Girl (and Vice Versa)”) the song mentions that ‘Says she loves her Jesus, and she loves herself’ before adding ‘Wish I wasn’t wearin’ this shirt’. “The Voyager Of Beliefs” takes causal look at Church and the golden rule but takes a serious look for a relationship with God (‘What if I stumble? What if I fall?/When I’m on my way to You,/What if I need You? Who do I call?/How do I know I’ll get through?/Because I don’t wanna ride the fence anymore’).
One might say that the punk music isn’t cutting-edge overall but the tunes are solid and the music for each song meets the theme well. More importantly it’s a huge step for FM Static step out and take a relevant stand with their Faith and sing to ‘And if we take our time, I bet we can all find/The things in life worth living for’ and ‘I need to build my faith sometimes/But I am so comfortable in line.’ Dear Diary is a treasure and a must have for fans of the punk genre along with being one album which deserves praise.
View All Music And Book Reviews By Nathan | View Nathan's Profile
|
