Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Taproot matures, September 17, 2008
I was wondering how Taproot was going to follow up their best release, the amazingly varied "Blue-Sky Research," and I must say this new album is a pleasant surprise. The majority of the album is filled with mid-tempo songs that have more melody than they ever have used before. Sure there are still a few songs like the jaw dropping first song, "Path Less Taken" which shows that they can still be heavy if they want to, but songs like the amazing first single, "Wherever I Stand" set the tone for the album. Another highlight is "As One" which has one of the catchiest choruses you will ever hear from this band. Personally, I think that the band is much better now than they were when they first started out. They have risen above their nu-metal pasts and become an excellent melodic hard rock band. I think that "Blue-Sky Research" was their crowning jewel so far because it balanced out their heavy songs with their melodic songs almost perfectly, but this album is quickly winning me over. Just a refreshing listen overall.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Buy it!, September 19, 2008
I became a huge fan of Taproot after seeing the Poem video and buying Welcome. Welcome is one of my favorite albums of all time, with Myself topping the list of my favorite songs of all time. Blue Sky Research shocked me at first but turned out to be a fantastic album once I gave it some time and really got a chance to digest it. I've listened to it almost as much as Welcome and would put it in my top 10 albums of all time.
I just picked up Our Long Road Home and was, again, shocked. However, the more I listen to it the more I like it, much in the same way that Blue Sky Research won me over. I am absolutely blown away by It's Natural, a track featuring a female vocalist with Stephen. The same blown away I was when I first heard Myself, a track so different from anything I'd heard before that it became something special. The style of Stephen's vocals and the way they're mixed in this track is first rate. To be honest with you, I had goosebumps listening to it this morning driving to work when they have a duet at the end. Yes, it's THAT good. (Listening to it right now on my headphones!)
Now, don't get me wrong, the album isn't perfect but it's still a fantastic album. There are things I wish Taproot would do more of (a few heavier tracks and not sounding so commercial at times) but they've matured over the years and I think they're going to appeal to a much larger crowd with this release than they did with Blue Sky Research. Selling out, not at all. Making great music that a lot of people will love, yes.
Keep making great music, guys. Looking forward to seeing you on tour soon!
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Honest opinion from a longtime fan..., September 18, 2008
I have been a fan since Welcome. Then I backtracked to Gift, which by the way, is a great album. "Smile" and "Again and Again" are two of the best songs I've ever seen live. I saw these guys once on the Welcome tour and twice on the Blue Sky Research tour. I've seen over 50 bands live, ranging from Rage Against the Machine to the Beastie Boys(actually that was the same show and it was killer!!), but my favorite is Taproot. The energy simply can't be matched and Stephen has the least forced scream I've witnessed in person. I was a huge fan of Blue Sky Research. Easily their most diverse record, the tempo shifted from heavy to melodic and back seamlessly throughout the entire album.
That brings us to Our Long Road Home. Recorded in a remodeled barn near Stephen's home in Michigan, the band created it's first independent album since pre-Gift, giving them the freedom to do whatever they wanted. Unfortunately on some tracks, it's easy to understand why. Don't get me wrong, there are some killer cuts here. Old school fans will still dig the hell out of "Path Less Taken" and "Take It." "Karmaway" may be the highlight of the whole album. With its lazy, soaring guitar riff, it has a very un-Taproot vibe to it, almost epic in a way. The single "Wherever I Stand" is pretty catchy, but not in the same realm as past singles like "Poem" or "Calling." "Be the 1" grows on you and "Stethoscope" is a beautiful instrumental that seems like it could've been better off as an intro to an actual song.
With the good however, come the bad. "Run to" is the definition of cheesy nu-metal rock, even more so than "Promise" from BSR. The chorus just feels forced and would've been more appropriately sung by Chris Daughtry. It's just not very good. "It's Natural" features the first time use of female vocals by the band, with lackluster results. The remaining tracks here are just average.
Our Long Road Home in a nutshell isn't a bad effort from Taproot, just not what I've come to expect from a band that has never ceased to amaze over the years. I guess it's basically what I expected: some really killer jams, and some effortless pop songs. While not as balanced as BSR, it's a decent effort and will surely find its niche within both diehard fans as well as new ones.
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