Review Summary: Stabbing Westward whole-heartedly embrace radio rock and attempt to fully break into the mainstream market.
When a band that has already released a few albums decides to release a self-titled album, it’s generally a good sign they’re attempting to redefine themselves. Shortly before this album was released, an interview with Chris Hall (vocals) prepared everyone for the changes they should expect. He spoke about how Stabbing Westward wrote such great pop-rock songs but that they had always ended up making them ugly by adding effects, screaming, etc. On this album, he warned, they decided to write what they wanted, regardless of fan expectations.
The self-titled album they released on unsuspecting fans featured a radical departure from even their most radio-friendly songs of the past. The emotion in Chris Hall’s voice was still present, and the same lyrical ideas were still being used, but without any anger or aggression, and with a whole lot more added vulnerability. Also, the industrial influences of the past were almost entirely wiped away (with "Television" being the sole exception), and replaced with actual keyboard melodies. I admit, like a lot of their fans, I hated this album for the longest time when I first heard it. It wasn’t what I expected, it was so poppy, it was so catchy; they had replaced the anger and despair of the first three albums with hurt and regret, and I wasn’t having it.
After a year or so, I threw it back on and listened to it on its own merit, and was surprised to find that I liked what I was hearing. Within the first minute of the first track, you can tell this isn’t the same Stabbing Westward that had released
Darkest Days a few years before. This was subdued, melodic, and safe. Musically the raging guitars had been dulled down to radio friendly levels, and the electronics had been dropped entirely. On past albums there was always an emphasis on catchy choruses, but now it seemed like it was the central theme of each song. Even more surprising was the eventual realization that the opening track was the closest thing to the past this album was going to offer.
The next few tracks only reinforced the idea that this album was ushering in a changed band with "Perfect,” "I Remember," and "Wasted" coming off as even more subdued and melodic than the opener. These songs dropped the distorted guitars completely and replaced it with clean-sounding electric guitars as well as an abundance of acoustic guitars. Chris Hall’s vocals also didn’t have any anger in them at all. They sounded depressed, as if all the fight had finally been taken out of him. After those tracks comes the only song from Stabbing Westward I’ve ever truly disliked; the song is called "Happy.” The main reason they failed with “Happy” is the poppy music and depressing lyrics clash so terribly, and it ruins what could have possibly been two good separate songs.
On Stabbing Westward’s final release, they stripped their songs down to their mainstream cores, and delivered a collection of songs that had more in common with Goo Goo Dolls and Tonic than the industrialized influences of their past. Almost entirely gone are the dark distorted guitars, replaced with acoustic guitars and an overall warmer electric guitar sound. Also, Chris sings through the entire album without yelling at all. Only his ability to convey emotion, and the slight edge still retained on a few of the songs stands between them and becoming just another Goo Goo Dolls or Tonic. If you liked the single "What Do I Have to Do" from Stabbing Westward’s second album but thought everything else was too dark or heavy, than this is the album you’re looking for. For everyone else that were already fans, go into this album with an open mind and you’ll discover a pretty decent release.
Note:
After this album and its disappointing sales, the band broke up. Their vocalist started another band called The Dreaming
Their Keyboardist helped revive another broke-up industrial band by the name of Clay People and is also in a band called Chokt.
