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| The Sound Of Madness | 
 enlarge | Artist: Shinedown
Label: Atlantic
Category: Music
List Price: $18.98
Buy New: $9.39
You Save: $9.59 (51%)
New (44) Used (16) Collectible (1) from $8.60
Avg. Customer Rating:  54 reviews
Sales Rank: 136
Format: Enhanced
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 4.9 x 0.4
MPN: 511244
UPC: 075678993244
EAN: 0075678993244
ASIN: B0017I1FO4
Release Date: June 24, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Tracks:
| • | Devour | | • | Sound of Madness | | • | Second Chance | | • | Cry for Help | | • | The Crow & The Butterfly | | • | If You Only Knew | | • | Sin With a Grin | | • | What a Shame | | • | Cyanide Sweet Tooth | | • | Breaking Inside | | • | Call Me |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
Shinedown's highly anticipated third album, The Sound Of Madness, is due out on Atlantic Records on June 24, 2008. The record opens with lead single "Devour." Its heavy onslaught of ripping guitars and relentless drums would not sound out of place on a Guitar Hero soundtrack. Of the album, frontman Brent Smith says "In the seven years of this thing called Shinedown, I've seen a lot of different things - what we've all gone through on the road, things in our personal lives or witnessed firsthand through the fans that we've made and the relationships we've built with our audience. I think the biggest thing was I didn't want to sugarcoat the way life can be sometimes." Their face-melting rock comes as no surprise, considering that the band hails from sultry Jacksonville, Florida. Their 2003 debut album, Leave A Whisper, and sophomore follow-up, Us And Them, have been RIAA-certified platinum and gold respectively and they have had songs featured on the WWE, ESPN and in various video games. Shinedown will be out on the road this spring and summer, playing a handful of radio shows and outdoor festivals including Rock On The Range before setting out on their own headlining tour.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 49 more reviews...
 Shinedown has returned... June 27, 2008
13 out of 15 found this review helpful
I have been a huge fan of this band since I first heard "Fly From the Inside" on the radio, and still hope that "Us and Them" goes platinum one day like "Leave a Whisper" did. I have been highly anticipating this album since I heard Devour for the first time on the radio. The whole time I was listening to it, the thought "This band seems familiar" kept running through my head. I googled the lyrics and thought, "Yeah, that makes sense...it was a great song."
This album is phenomenal. I don't know why I was surprised, Shinedown has never disappointed. True, "Us and Them" has some songs I tend to skip over (What were they thinking with "Atmosphere"?), but all in all it's an awesome album that I've listened to hundreds of times through.
Once again, they have changed their sound. While their first album was calculated with meticulous attention to detail, chord progressions, lyrical content, and a passionate singing style, and heavy overall, and their second album was much more radio friendly while still maintaining a truth and vitality that is lacking in much of today's music, with several ballads that blow you away whenever you hear them, this album breaks through new boundaries.
It is true that much of the album is radio friendly, but in this case that's a positive thing. They aren't going anywhere for a while, which is good. However, they've brought back much of the musical aptitude that was missing on their second album and combined it with some interesting choices as far as melody are concerned. Let's break down the songs, one by one.
1 - Devour (9/10): This song kicks off the album with intensity. It is unlike anything they've ever done, and while it's similar to the style of other modern bands out there, it still seems to have some signature Shinedown flare to it. That may be Brent's singing, or the intricate guitar work. Either way, it's a great song.
2 - Sound of Madness (10/10): One of my favorites on the album, the chorus is like a lesson in lyrical creativity, and the guitar riff is, how shall I say..."rollicking", to say the least. It's hard not to bob your head to this song when it's on, and I love singing along.
3 - Second Chance (8/10): While it's lyrically interesting, it sounds to me like a throwback to "Us and Them", which had several songs with similar chord progressions and verse-chorus formulas. That either makes it signature Shinedown, or a disappointment, and on an album of this caliber I tend to lean toward the latter. That's not to say I don't love it, which I do (8 out of 10 is a great score from me), but it's sounds like "been there, done that."
4 - Cry For Help (8/10): When I first heard this song, I thought back to Oleander's "Joyride", which this is reminiscent of. Another rocker, that is great on this album, but not the best one on here. Still, I'm very glad to see Shinedown embrace this type of music. They've never really done anything like this. All the songs on their first album that were "rockers" were hard rockers, more like Nu-Metal, not like this. This is true rock, which is awesome.
5 - The Crow and the Butterfly (9/10): I love this song. Another song that sounds like it's from "Us and Them", but it's just so good I don't care. The lyrics are good, too, and I can almost visualize the girl slowly moving away from Brent's outstretched hands when he's singing. It's just a powerful song with some really cool chords thrown in.
6 - If You Only Knew (9/10): This is another song that's pretty much awesome. However, I do like the verses better than the chorus, which gets kind of generic as far as lost love songs go. The beginning is my favorite part, though, along with the part at the end of the chorus that goes, "The only thing that I still believe in is you." It's another lyric that is sung with meaning behind it, and it makes the song for me.
7 - Sin With a Grin (10/10): Another favorite on the album, another rocker that I love to sing along to as it blasts in my car. I also love the message of just getting pissed off. The bridge is also an interesting musical turn for the band, trying something new with new and interesting ways of singing and playing their instruments. This is an example of the thing I find everywhere on this album, musical experimentation which is new to them, but not necessarily new in general.
8 - What a Shame (9/10): Another great signature Shinedown ballad. The chorus just grabs you, both lyrically and musically, and again Brent's voice makes me weep when he start belting out his true feelings. Just a great overall song.
9 - Cyanide Sweet Tooth Suicide (8/10): Another rocker. I feel that a lot of bands write songs with "suicide" in the title for no real reason, so I have a hard time liking them. This one is pretty good, as they go, but at the end of the album it seems to lose the steam gathered by the other rockers.
10 - Breaking Inside (8/10): The first few times I listened to this song, I really thought it was pretty generic. However, just like their first album, the more I listen to it the more I like it. It's got a very cool sounding melody behind the verses, and the chorus, though generic, is catchy as hell, and once again Brent's voice makes it stand out as amazing. Man I love this band.
11 - Call Me (9/10): I absolutely love this song. It's so simple, and yet the violin, the piano, and Brent's voice just take you away, and you really feel what he is feeling the whole time. There are no words to describe the song, except to say that it's pretty, very pretty. Remember the first time you heard ".45"? That's what this song feels like.
Overall, it's a fantastic album with no filler tracks. I can definitely start at the beginning and listen all the way through without skipping any tracks, which is a rarity these days. The only album to rival it so far this year would be Disturbed's "Indestructible", which is also awesome (see my review).
My CD player is broken....this CD won't eject!!!! July 1, 2008
9 out of 10 found this review helpful
This album is easily my favorite of the three Shinedown releases. I really liked Leave a Whisper, I accepted Us and Them for what it was, but THIS.....THIS is what I hoped for from Shinedown. The musicianship, the lyrics, the passion with which they're sung....it's all here. And, the more I listen to it, the more I like it. If you even only partly liked Leave a Whisper, you will LOVE this album. I've not taken it out of the player since I got it, and I get bored with music pretty easily.
I missed them when they were on tour last time....and I'm not going to make that same mistake again.
Sound of Madness Shines Down Brighter Than Ever June 24, 2008
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
There are many words that can explain this new cd from Shinedown, some being (but not limited to) astonishing, brilliant, and mind-blowing. Lead singer Brent Smith, who has struggled through the loss of his two guitarist quite possibily has developed the best rock album of the century yet.
Stand-alone hard tracks this album contains include Devour, Sound of Madness, Cyanide Sweet Tooth Suicide and Cry for Help, all of which show maturity and development from the previous two cds. Slower tracks, such as The Crow and the Butterfly, If You Only Knew and Call Me are just as good if not better than the previous album (such as Shed Some Light, I Dare You and Someday). After mentioning all these tracks, I have not even mentioned my personal favorite, What A Shame, which knocked me off my feet the first time I heard it.
This album represents pure genius in the modern rock and roll era. Shinedown's passion, devotion to fans and ambition to keep rock and roll alive in the world is a blessing to all rock and roll fans in existence, and hopefully they will stay around for years and years to come.
 Shinedown has lost their distinct sound June 26, 2008
5 out of 12 found this review helpful
I know everyone is gonna hate this review but their hard rock songs have lost there edge. You can no longer tell Shinedown from every other average hard rock band. Devour just sounds like an average band, making an average song. They had a sound about them on there first cd, that was so much different from anything else out there. It is gone on the harder songs. With that being said.. There slower songs.. Are AMAZING! Which is good for me because I have always liked them better. But I can listen to leave a whisper over and over again. With this cd, I find myself looking down at every hard song, only to see its half over and me wanting to push the next button.
Now to the good stuff.. Second chance is very good.. The crow and the butterfly is just as good. Then you get to 3 of the last 4, and I can't pick a favorite. What a Shame, Breaking Inside, and Call Me are 3 of the best songs Shinedown has ever made. If only the whole cd had the quality these do. And while they are a little different, you can tell its Shinedown. But I do still miss the sound of Leave a Whisper..
*UPDATE: After a lot of people not liking my review, I decided to try and really give the hard songs a chance. My decision and review hasn't changed much. I tried focusing on the 4 songs people seem to like the most. The sound of madness- its just average, really. The chorus is good and when it comes on I can listen to it, but as soon as the chorus ends I wanna change the song. Cry or help- I'm sorry but I don't get this song at all. I feel like any hard rock band can make a song just like this. I can't listen to it. Sin with a Grin- is boring.. Not much else to say here, its super repetitive. And Devour, it is just plain bad in my opinion.
When I say they lost their distinct sound, I did not mean the voice. Any Shindown fan can tell Brent's voice from anyone else. It is very easy to do, I mean the "sound" as in the music. It just isn't as distinct, it is more like the rest of the rock world. And just remember, this is an opinion, nothing more. Everyone likes different things. I like their softer music because the harder stuff doesn't seperate them from all the other bands out there.
Shinedown's masterpiece: a long time coming June 24, 2008
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
Shinedown's debut album, "Leave a Whisper," was an extremely accomplished piece of hard rock musicianship. It showcased the band's undeniable talent and ear for melody, and set them apart from the crowd of faceless mainstream musicians.
2005's "Us and Them" was, at least in this reviewer's opinion, a mis-step. It had no truly high-caliber material to match masterpieces such as "Fly from the Inside" and "45" from their first album.
Shinedown's latest, "The Sound of Madness," finds them at the height of their powers despite several personnel changes. This is Shinedown at their absolute best. "The Sound of Madness" is the very best Shinedown album yet, and indeed, one of the best albums to be released this year or in years previous.
The album is full of hard-hitting songs that are heavier than anything the band has ever done ("Sound of Madness," "Sin with a Grin," "Cyanide Sweet Tooth Suicide") but also has a refreshing number of slower (but no less intense) ballads, including the beautiful "The Crow and the Butterfly," "If You Only Knew," and the stunning closer "Call Me." Shinedown have not only discovered the depths of their talents, but also their incredible versatility.
Shinedown have a masterpiece on their hands, and the current best record of the year.
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