vandalz's Full Review: Once Upon a Shattered Life by Seventh Day Slumber
Lately I have been searching for more Christian rock bands to listen to, in the place of my more worldly rock listening pleasures. I have been introduced to a couple of bands that have really caught my attention. I heard this band on one of the various compilations of Christian rock via X 2007. On X 2007, there is a song, Awake, and it is fully of heavy guitar riffs and aggressive beats. So being that I found this particular song entertaining, I decided to give their latest album a chance.
Once upon a Shattered Life is the 2006 release by Seventh Day Slumber. In it there are a lot of musical transitions from song to song. The album has some highly aggressive songs, very similar to Awake, and it also has some rock ballad type songs as well.
Depending on your musical preference there will be some songs on here that will see the skip button a lot, and well, others not so much. I mainly listen to the more aggressive songs Break Me, Shattered Life, Make Believe, and Chris’ Letter. At times I will listen to the more laid back songs Back in Time and Brand New Man. However, I find myself hitting skip on Caroline, Masquerade, and Ocean’s from the Rain. I will discuss the reasoning in the following paragraphs.
*** The Songs I Like ***
Being that I am heavily influenced from more worldly bands like Creed, Nickelback, Korn, Slipknot, System of a Down and such, I look mainly for songs with a more aggressive beat. That being said, I want to hear loud guitars, driving bass lines, and drums that can mesmerize nearly anyone. Seventh Day Slumber does have some songs that retain my attention. No, they are not nearly as aggressive as Slipknot or System of a Down, but they do hold their own against the likes of Creed or Nickelback.
Break Me is not entirely aggressive, slowing down in the verses, but does manage to pump it back up in the choruses. I love to listen to this when I am exercising. Even with that it helps me to remember that even when others push me to do those things that I shouldn’t, that I am not going to give in …. That I’m not going to break down for them.
Shattered Life doesn’t even start off hard. As a matter of fact, for the first 48 seconds it is rather mundane, but after that it picks up. Just as in the first song, it has it ups and down from verse to chorus. This song really picks at my heart. The lyrics really make a lot of sense to me. I used to think that to have friends that I had to make them happy and do what they wanted, but over the years I have learned otherwise.
Make Believe starts off highly aggressive, cooling down for a minute for the verse. This song really focuses on losing what is most important to you by replacing it with something more worldly. Salvation is our most important asset, and yet we sometimes end up replacing it with the pleasures of this world. This song can really hit home for a lot of people at some point or another in their life.
”All the things I chose that slowly took Your place
Are laughing back at me and I can’t make it go away
My life is crashing down, another tragedy
Another broken dream, now it’s only make believe”
*** The Songs I Dislike ***
Let me start off by saying that I completely detest ballads. I have never like rock ballads from the classic rock bands, and I will not begin to like them now. These songs are slow, with a singer that always seems to have a crooning type voice. That being said, I do not enjoy listening to Caroline and Ocean’s from the Rain. These songs epitomize exactly what I said I do not enjoy. Therefore, I frequently use the skip button for these songs.
Now don’t get me wrong, the songs have deep meanings, especially Caroline, which seems to pull on the heartstrings. An excerpt from the song will show you more of what I mean.
Caroline, let me wipe away your tears and give you life,
Make you feel beautiful again
Caroline, don’t throw it all away
I’m here tonight to take away your pain.
If you were a person that was looking for some sort of inspiration, this song would definitely do it, and this is actually one of Seventh Day Slumber’s radio station songs. This song has attracted many people to them, but not me.
*** A Quick Overview ***
There are several songs on here that I truthfully enjoy, four to be exact. There are three songs that I like sometimes, and then there are three songs that I detest. So seven of ten songs would rank this album as slightly above average enjoyment for me. I will find myself listening to this album for about two or three days a week, but not everyday. I look for more aggressive musicianship normally.
Seventh Day Slumber belt out catchy hooks behind throbbing guitars while singing about real-life problems confronting many young people- but what sets...More at Christianbook.com
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