Customer Reviews

Dark Days

5 star:		(48)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The album by Coal Chmaber is amazing. It has everything a fan of hardcore metal could ever want. Heavy riffs, screams and growls and hard-hitting drums. This is Coal Chamber's most focused record, it has far better flow than the two previous efforts. It's like a blend of the heaviness of the first and the dark melodies of the second. In almost every way, this album is superior to the two others. It has much better playing (especially Rayna's bass playing is by all means way better), much better production (the sound is clear and crispy at the same time), and the songs are of a very high standard.

Where the new album fails, is that it doesn't break new ground, as Chamber Music did. This time, the band didn't reinvent themselves as they did last time. But the new album is definately a leap foreward.

I recommend this to any fan of metal, whatever metal it might be. Well, perhaps not to fans of Linkin Park and Papa Roach. It might be a little too heavy and scary for them. But anyone else with a good taste in music.

Dark days is a step forward for coal chamber in terms of heaviness. This album sounds similar to their awesome self-titled debut. Compared to Chamber Music, Dark Days is overall a better album. Chamber Music had much more melody and singing on it, which wasn't neccessarily a bad thing, but it just wasn't coal chamber. But the band do what they do best on Dark Days, with unrelenting heavy beats, psycotic choruses repeated over and over again, and great energy with every song. Still it doesn't come close to their 1st album which is one of my all time favorites. But at least coal chamber are being true to themselves and their fans my making a very heavy album and not trying to get on the radio like so many other pathedic imitator bands. So in conclusion, buy Dark Days if you want "nu-metal" in its most original and raw form. Don't buy dark days if you like listening to rock radio.

This is the best Coal Chamber album. The first album rocked very hard, but was undermined slightly by so-so sound. Chamber Music was let's say, lackluster. An overproduced version of the first. Dark Days isn't breaking any new musical ground, but it sounds 100 times better than Chamber Music. This CD is going in my top 50 all-time greatest. My favorite, "Fiend" sounds a bit like Marilyn Manson, and kicks the CD off nicely. The title track sounds like it came off of the first CD, but got polished a little bit more. Overall, if you're a disenchanted Coal Chamber fan (like I was), give 'em a break and give this one a listen. If you're a fan of the genre, this is a must have. And if you like your music hard, loud, and fast, this is for you.

My title says it all. This cd showcases Coal Chamber's darker side (after their last album) and is more goth-industrial influenced nu-metal. Good songs are Something Told Me, Empty Jar, and Beckoned. Its also interesting to hear Dez Fafara go from a pretty good clean voice to a really creepy speaking voice, and then back to his trademark blood-spattered scream. Get it, you won't be disappointed. Hell, get one for that Good Charlotte fan you know. Show them what being an angry goth-rocker is REALLY about!

Dark Days clocks in with me as the best outing in the Coal Chamber catalogue. Provocative lyrical content, hellishly harsh yet seductively playful vocals, a sledgehammer rhythm section, and Meegs Rascon's signature lawnmower-register guitar riffing come together at their individual and collective pinnacles to make Dark Days the model example of what Coal Chamber have been trying to create since their foray into the metal world. Tracks like "Drove", "Fiend", and "Watershed" show the band's progress in the heavy area, while tracks like "Empty Jar" and "Dark Days" take things down a notch and embrace the more melodic, creepier side of things. Other tracks like "Glow" and "Something Told Me" display perfect radio sensibility, and the closing cut, "Beckoned", caps off the album in perfect mood, tone, and tempo. Finally, with the expanded version of the album, we get a studio version of the live classic "Anxiety" (not nearly as good when adapted to the studio), along with bonus cuts "Save Yourself" (a decent song that's obviously a b-side) and the Scott Humphrey remix of "One Step", one of the album's lesser tracks. All in all an excellent, exceptionally worthy purchase... for Coal Chamber fans, or for fans of good music, period.

I gave this album an honest listen, with an open mind and ears. Brad Fafara's lyrics, just as in their two other horrid releases, love to repeat the same laughable lyrics over and over in the same format choruses. Sure, I hear they put on a good live SHOW, but that says absolutely nothing for this lackluster music. They love to live at the same tempo for darn near every single song on all 3 of their albums. Fafara sounds like he's gurgling phlegm when he yells, in comparison to some of the other more listenable howlers out there, such as Jamey Jasta of Hatebreed (*gasp* real lyrics, coherent too!). Once again, don't expect anything new. This has all been done before, there is absolutely no improvement in the band whatsoever. Read this and go listen to some worthwhile music elsewhere.

Ahhh!!!!!!!!
Watershed
Watershed you've made your bed
Watershed
Watershed you've made your bed

Sorry, I was just singing along!
Great album! Dark days is is different from chamber music. It's really really heavy. It lacks some melodies in my opinion. I like 'em both. The first album is good too.
For chamber fans only.

This group is probably one of my top ten favorite groups of all time. great to listen over and over again. Guitars and Drums sound awesome.
1-Fiend-10/10
2-Glow-10/10
3-Watershed-10/10
4-Something Told Me-100/10
5-Dark Days- 8/10
6-Alienate Me- 10/10
7-One Step- 10/10
8- Friend-8/10
9-Rowboat-8/10
10-Drove-8/10
11-Beckoned-10/10
i recommend this cd to anyone who is a fan of metal or a fan of Static-X or Mushroomhead.

Dark Days is a good and dark metal CD, and it doesn't kill off the CC image, cuz usually a follow-up to an album like Chamber Music would be tempting to make lighter than previous music. Even though Chamber Music was definetely lighter in the heavyness than the first CD, Dark Days kind of relives that old school Coal Chamber and doesn't leave room for metal sell-outs. "Fiend" "Watershed" "Glow" "Dark Days" and "Rowboat" are amongst my favorites- good moshing music too!
If you like this CD, definetely check out Dez's new band Devildriver. It's a shame that Coal Chamber broke up though.

I've been a Coal Chamber fan since I heard "Shock the Monkey" on VH1's "Rock Show" back in 1999(yes, CC was on VH1). I liked that song and a while later came upon a copy of "Chamber Music" in a pawn shop and bought it. I loved every last song on that record so I bought their first one and loved it, as well. After this, I waited patiently for "Dark Days" to come out. I bought it a while after it came out and I must say, it rules! It has a more focused approach than on either previous album, and it is much heavier than them both. The only problem is, I kind of wish they had kept a little of the depth of their previous releases. While it is a great record, it gets a little monotonus after a while, and it doesn't have much "re-listen" value. I was hoping that they would incorporate a little more melody on their next album, but last week, I heard that they broke up. But, despite this album's shortcomings, it is a fitting swan song.