Customer Reviews

Twelve Year Silence

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

If you know the background of Dark New Day, you can pretty much know what to expect from their debut without hearing a single note. This group, which has been together for a little over half a year, is comprised of former members of Sevendust, Stereomud, Skrape, DoubleDrive and that dude who played bass for Creed (you know, the one who wasn't allowed in their videos or on the album cover). Their sound is a hefty combination of five guys who have been in the music scene long enough to develop their own musical identity, and obviously, a very strong and fruitful bond with each other. The title of the album, "12 Year Silence," is based on the fact that it has been twelve years since these old chums have played in a band together. So what we have here is a debut from a band with instant confidence and a defined sound, that will definitely appeal to fans of the previously mentioned groups.

Brett Hestla (that dude from Creed) handles the main vocal duties, and all I can say is: Wow. The guy has great pipes. What was he doing with Creed when he had much more talent? He is backed by Clint Lowery, the fallen Sevendust guitarist, who is the main reason why this album, and perhaps the group themselves, will always be compared to Sevendust (brace yourself, you're gonna see that name many times in this review). Those chunky, bottom heavy riffs he delivered in the 'Dust are just as dominant here, while Troy McLawhorn (DoubleDrive) and the other Lowery brother, Corey (formerly of Stereomud) back him up on guitar and bass (and in that order). Will Hunt, he of Skrape fame, proves to be a solid drummer, and belts out many yells that will have people hearing Sevendust even more in this music. As good as Hestla is, along with the other members, Lowery is easily the star of the show. I loved him in Sevendust, he was a crucial member (which has me kinda worried about THEIR fate), and it was great to see a guitarist who was so involved in the writing process, with a great voice to go along. Fans who followed him from Sevendust will not be disappointed. Not to slight the other members though, they've all got skill. Afterall, there isn't a bad track at all on this disc. "Brother," "Taking Me Alive" and "Fill Me Again" are instant hits, and the best representatives of D.N.D.'s (no, not Dungeons & Dragons) sound. "That's Enough" and "Follow The Sun Down," as the lightest moments, also provide the most clarity, and are primarily focused on the gifted songwriting (while the other tracks are more based on hooks and riffs), which, much like Sevendust, is of a highly collaborative nature.

True, the album is not without it's flaws. Main problem? You've heard Sevendust and Stereomud? Well, you know what to expect here. There's no beating around the bush, this will appeal to any and all Sevendust fans. And on a side note, while I'm a great fan of Lowery's, I'm a bit disappointed in his departure from what I consider to be one of the top rock bands of the past decade. As confident as I am in his replacement (Sonny Mayo, of Snot/Amen/(hed)p.e. fame), I know I will hear his absence in the next Sevendust album. Nevertheless, "12 Year Silence" is an instant hit. For a band that is rather new, but simultaneously old, they sure have a firm grip and will no doubt sound even better with their next record. And I bet they sound incredible live.

Few bands can claim to only have been together for a only few months and be able to have recorded a fantastic album, but such is the case with the group "Dark New Day" with the release of their album "Twelve Year Silence" in June, 2005. The band, which formed at the beginning of 2005, is comprised of Clint Lowery (guitar/vocals) who was a cofounder of the band Sevendust, his brother Corey Lowery (bass/vocals) who played in two previous groups, Troy McLawhorn (guitar/vocals) who once played for Doubledrive, Brett Hestla (bass/vocals) who once played for Creed and Will Hunt (drums/vocals). The combined professional experience of all five members is quite evident with the high quality of the music on this group's first album containing 11 songs at a total length of just over 45 minutes.

My rating for each of the album's 11 songs are listed below:

1. "Taking Me Alive" (5). A quiet beginning, then a discordant piano starts before the song ignites with bass & percussion and vocals from Brett Hestla.

2. "Brother" (5+). A soft beginning of guitars & percussion is the catalyst for the more powerful bass that joins in before giving way to let Brett Hestla's excellent vocals come through for the soft versus. These give way to the far more powerful & emotional choruses.

3. "Free" (5). Backwards-sounding guitars begin this softer song, but becomes more intense with the highly harmonized & bass-driven choruses, then leads to a more powerful center section.

4. "Pieces (5+). A stylized start explodes with percussion, bass & guitar, as well as some intense vocals.

5. "Bare Bones" (5+). Strong percussion accompanied by guitar & bass paves the road for some deep vocals, then intensifies for more harmonization and overall intensity. This gives way to a softer, ballad-like center section, but returns to its more intense sound.

6. "That's Enough" (4.5). A guitar-picked start with percussion accompanies Brett's vocals, then picks up with greater harmonization from the other band members for the choruses. More of a ballad.

7. "Fill Me Again" (5). Good start of powerfully melodic chords sets the stage for the vocals and very well harmonized vocals.

8. "Lean" (5+). A dark beginning explodes with bass, percussion & intense vocals with an incredible chorus and an instrumental center.

9. "Evergreen" (4). A ballad (essentially) with softer instrumentation that emphasizes the vocals & harmonized choruses.

10. "Heal in Time" (4.5). Guitars quickly give way to bass in this song that uses a lot minor chords in the verses, but with choruses dominated more by major chords.

11. "Follow the Sun Down" (5). An acoustic guitar begins this slow ballad with emotional vocals and well-harmonized choruses.

Overall, I rate the album "Twelve Year Silence" by "Dark New Day" with a resounding 5 out of 5 stars and very highly recommend it to anyone who also enjoys groups such as Disturbed, Mudvayne and Stone Sour. In my opinion, this is one of the best albums for 2005.

Let me start by saying that I've had this CD since last Wednesday, a week before it was released, because I pre-ordered it from their website. Not only did I get it so early but it came with a second CD booklet with all the band members' signatures. That just goes to show how cool these guys really are for starters. Ok, so you don't read reviews to hear about how down to earth bands are. Well, simply put, this CD is amazing.

Twelve Year Silence is a great debut effort from a supergroup such as this. The name of the CD symbolizes how long they have all known each other though it was always in different bands. Some of these are Sevendust, Creed, Stuck Mojo, Doubledrive, Virgos Merlot, Skrape, and others. As you might expect, there's a very fresh sound with all these great minds coming together. Upon opening the booklet you'll see that all the band members are vocalists aside from the instrument they play. There is a very unified feeling about this band and the music in general.

Every song is likable and I find myself skipping over none of them. They don't sound the same either, be it vocally or musically. It should also be said there's some well placed guitar solos, particularly in Heal In Time(my fav), that send chills down my back. They seem to cover all the ground while keeping every song fresh. The first single is powerful and gives a good indication as to how the album will feel. That is, from the deep and thoughtful lyrics to the combined vocals of the band, you feel what they feel and can't help but sing along.

It's hard to say what I can compare this band to other than a little bit of all the bands I mentioned above. Here it molds flawlessly into one creation. Buy this CD and enjoy the ride as we wait to see what they'll do next.

For those who dont know. Not only were the members of this band from Sevendust, Creed, Stereomud, Doubledrive and Skrape. But Brett Hestla(lead vocals) was the lead singer and guitarist for one of the most underrated and genius bands to never make it big. They were called "Virgos Merlot" later known as "Virgos" and you have to listen to them to see how much talent they had. Dark New Day is about as good as Virgos, the only reason Virgos didnt get any further is because the big shots didnt know how to market them. All in all though this album is great. Not a bad song on here, the best in my opinion are "Free", "Taking me Alive"(which reminds me of Tool and Alice in Chains) and "Evergreen".


-JPM

After hearing that clint left his former band, Sevendust, i was disapointed. i didnt know what would happen to 7d and i wasnt sure what to expect from clint's new band (which he formed with his brother). To say the least, i was blown away. This cd rocks and is one of my favorites at the moment. Dark New Day caught me off gaurd, i wasnt expecting much and got so much. although it only has 11 tracks, all of them are great tunes. If there is one song thats not really doing it for you, by the 3rd listen you'll be in love with that song too. I have also seen DND live and they put on a fantastic show. IF YOU DONT HAVE THIS CD, GET IT.

I am going to get right down to it, this band is just a great rock band, simply put. The group is the quintessential rock band that has yet to strike it big. Dark New Day has plenty of highlights including: Healin Time, Brother, Evergreen, and Fill Me Again. There really is not a bad track to speak of. This album has got my full endorsement.

Just came back from watching them play live in Baltimore, MD (with Crossfade--who rocked--and Seether). Based on the CD alone, I thought this was a great band . . . live show only strengthened that judgment. These guys--as others note--have come together to produce a powerful sound with intelligent, thoughtful lyrics to boot. This album gets my highest endorsement . . . hope the group can stick together in the years to come and churn out more excellent music.

Man, what a new band this has become. Every intro in each song starts off catchy and then BAMM!!! the hard stuff kicks in with bad-ass guitar riffs and Bretts vocals can really strengthen the emotion for his music. I recommend this album to anyone who is a fan of Creed, Sevendust, Virgos/Merlot, Alterbridge etc. This music will set you in the mood for more of their stuff. I recommend buying this else-where, where the price is a little cheaper like at Target where I buy most of my new music at. Overall, 5 stars from me and great new music recommended by me.

I just saw them perform in Youngstown OH at nice and small venue so I was up close. They are amazing live, everything sounds so clean and well done. Its also very heavy live. They hung around afterwards to meet everyone. All of them are cool as hell. They cd itself is very good. If your a sevendust fan you will enjoy this cd but it is different from sevendust. They do have their own sound. One cool thing I liked is that all 5 of them do backing vocals and all of them do this well. Of course both of the Lowery brothers did this alot in past efforts(sevendust,stereomud and stuck mojo). Well enough typing go and check this cd out and then catch them live.

I'm writing this review in response to the person who stated "If you know the background of this band..." and kept referring to Brett as "that guy from Creed". Obviously he does not know the background of this band, or he would have more correctly identified Brett as "That guy from Virgos Merlot". Yes, Brett has been a lead singer before, and he does not disappoint. Brett was brought in for Creed because he had the knowledge of what the bass needed to sound like and he could put up with Scott Stapp. It's not that he wasn't allowed in the videos or on the cover art... especially since he didn't actually play the bass on the Creed record... Mark Tremonti recorded all the bass on the Weathered album. He was simply brought in as a touring bassist. He had his own band... Virgos... which broke up around the same time as the Creed decline. Anyway, point being... please do not identify Brett as "that guy from Creed". There is so much more to him than that, so you should do your research and see what you actually find out.

Anyway, this is a review so I will review. A bit harder than the stuff of Virgos and Virgos Merlot, but still with a completely different style than anyone else, and that's what makes them so incredible. If you haven't seen them play a live show yet, get to their website and find a date to go. Go and meet Brett and the guys. They're more than happy to hang around until morning to meet everyone if they have to.