Review Summary: Am I precious to you now?
The Sickness did have positive moments but ultimately was a flash in the pan and not the epidemic that the men of Disturbed were hoping it would be, and logically, it seems like they knew it. In fact, when one listens to
Believe, they would be hard-pressed to find anything that could come off the first record. And while there is no catchy anthem quite to the level of “Stupify”,
Believe is ultimately a stronger, harder, and more intelligent record.
If one were to ask for one word to describe the difference between
The Sickness and Believe, I would say “organic”. The “bloops and beeps”, so to speak, from the first album are totally gone. The rapping from songs like “Voices” and “Droppin Plates”? Absolutely eliminated. The profanity-fueled, “never stick your hand in my face” lyrics are almost all gone, but more on that later. And this record really isn’t a nu-metal album, leaning moreso to alternative metal/modern metal stylings in the vein of Breaking Benjamin or RED.
Album opener “Prayer” immediately grabs the listener’s attention and shows that Disturbed has brought their game up a few notches with hard-edged, almost technical riffing, pounding drums and bass, and an adrenaline-rush of a vocal performance from Draiman. And let’s touch on the intense lyrics taken straight from the book of Job and how the devil tormented him. Whether you’re a Christian or not, you can’t deny the palpable menace dripping off this track. Speaking of Christianity, religion is a common theme of the album and is all part of the lyrical maturity along with instrumental maturity. “Believe” blends strong riffs and a slow-building, well-constructed bridge with honest questioning (not necessarily criticism) of faith in a higher power, while “Remember” boasts some of Disturbed’s best guitar work alongside a deeply personal and arguably spiritual experience. Even second-to-last track “Devour” shows more promise than most of the tracks found in the middle-to-end of the previous album. “Darkness” brings in orchestral strings, acoustic guitar, and vocals about a broken relationship for a fantastic ballad.
For those who really enjoyed the heavy, riff-driven, “pump-up” ragers of
The Sickness, there’s some of those too and even they have shown growth. Both “Rise” and “Awaken” blunty confront enemies, but with a backdrop of complex riffs (especially “Awaken”) and a more fleshed out vocal performance. It’s also nice to actually really hear both the drums and bass this time around, as it makes the album more satisfying. However, these ragers are hit and miss. Though the aforementioned ones work well, “Intoxication” may as well be “Want” 2.0 and just comes off as bland and unimaginative. “Liberate” has good intentions and a catchy chorus, but the repetition of “Liberate your mind, motherf**ker” comes off as slightly juvenile. This being a Disturbed album, there is a little filler, but notably less than last time.
With each of the band members sounding like they’d grown ten years instead of two,
Believe is a potent, power-drive of an album that remains a classic in Disturbed’s discography and a fan favorite. The Sickness may have turned you off, and while that is fair,
Believe deserves at least a spin or two.
