Review Summary: All the songs on here are worth listening to, but there really isn't anything special about most of them. Its a fun record that's good for a short listen, clocking in at only 37:25.
Nu-Metal and Post-Grunge were the predominant mainstream rock genres around in 2001, and Drowning Pool, like many other bands at the time, seemed to fit the bill perfectly. They weren't quite as heavy as nu-metal acts like Disturbed or Deftones, but they were certainly heavier than bands such as Creed or Nickelback, kind of stuck in between Post-Grunge and Nu-Metal. Though they have never received much fame beyond a few hit singles, they certainly had potential back in 2001. Their first album, Sinner, went platinum within 6 weeks, thanks in part to the explosiveness of their most popular hit, "Bodies," which was all over rock radio.
The album is pretty typical nu-metal/alternative metal, featuring down-tuned guitars, basses that played root notes, and simple drum beats sped up. The guitars focus much more on rhythm than on soloing, and most of this album is just power-chords played in a rhythmic catchy way. One thing that does set this band apart from other bands of its genre, is the guitarist's use of the wah-wah effect on the top 3 strings, making for some incredibly cool sounds. Although its nothing too technical, it does serve to establish a sense of uniqueness. The bass is fairly simplistic, playing the root notes under the guitar, occasional coming in with a bassline, but nothing special. Their bassist is no Flea or anything. The drums also are nothing special, unless you happen to like to fast playing, because it really is just simple beats in a faster tempo than normal.
One thing that really shines is the singer, Dave William's, voice. He's easily one of the greatest singers in the genre, and most of the songs showcase this. He mostly has a muddy yell during the choruses, but in the verses he sings much cleaner, and you can't help but sing along(provided you know the words). The man can sing, and he isn't afraid to let you know.
One last thing before we get to the track-by-track, is that there is hardly any experimentation or deviation on the album. It seems like they were too timid to escape from the 3 minute, clean verse, explosive chorus formula that they follow almost throughout the entire album. While this does work, and there isn't a truly terrible song on the album, it does take away from its replay value. Don't get me wrong, I've listened to this whole album a good 20 times and I still love it, but its not something I would ever get obsessed over, listening to several times a day.
Sinner - The album's opener is immediately one of its highlights. It is the shortest song on the record, clocking in at only 2:27, and it immediately hooks you with its catchiness. This is one of the only songs on the record that feature relatively clean vocals in the verses as well as the chorus, and is probably the catchiest song on here. Contrary to most, this was the song that prompted me to get this record, not Bodies. 7.5/10
Bodies - Surely you've heard this song once if you're even a MILD fan of rock music in general. Drowning Pool's lead single is a great song, but I actually find its quality and radio-friendliness less than the previous track, and it surprises me that this was more successful than that one. Nevertheless, this is a great song, and fun to sing along to. This begins the album's formula of catchy verses, explosive choruses that most of its songs follows. It's a fun song, but not as good as it could have been. 6/10
Tear Away - The third and final single from the album(weird how they had all three singles right next to each other AND at the beginning, as if discouraging someone from listening to the rest), and the most experimental track on here. It contains clean vocals throughout, and a pretty slow pace compared to the rest of the album. It'll get stuck in your head for days, but I don't actually find it very memorable. It's a cool song though, that's for sure. 6/10
All Over You - Now we're talking. The first non-single on the album and also the greatest Drowning Pool song of all time. This song also contains clean, catchy vocals throughout, but at a much faster pace. Effects pedals are used a lot in this song on the guitar and also on the singer's voice. By far my favorite on the album, it's catchy, heavy, and everything you look for with this type of music. 9.5/10
Reminded - A disappointment compared to the last track, but still a good song. Unfortunetly it follows the formula set by Bodies all the way through, and the chorus is extremely hard to get into. But, as with Bodies the verse is fun to sing along too. The guitar work on this song is interesting, employing several effects throughout. 5.5/10
Pity - Another song that follows the formula. The chorus is actually pretty catchy though, despite the absence of clean vocals. The guitar is also amazingly cool in this song, playing along with the singer's voice. Coupled with one of the catchiest verses yet, this is an improvement over Reminded. 6.5/10
Mute - The third song in a row that follows the formula(what did I tell you?). The vocals in this song do differ from previous tracks though, having a much more rhythmic appeal. I can see some obvious influence from Disturbed's singer on this song. Again the chorus isn't very catchy, instead relying on being explosive and making you bang your hang. 6/10
I Am - Here's where the album starts to pick up again. Although this song AGAIN follows the clean verse, growling chorus formula, its actually very good. The verse is the catchiest so far(besides All Over You's), for one, and the chorus somehow forces you to sing along to it. Again driven by fast paced guitars, its just as simple an alt-metal song as the rest of the album, but it works incredibly well. 7.5/10
Follow - Another great song in the bane of All Over You. Finally featuring clean vocals during the chorus, we get a catchy song throughout. The guitar is again fast paced, as is the rest of the band, and works with the vocals to sound really cool. 8/10
Told You So - A pretty 'meh song tbh, especially following Follow(lol). There is one highlight in the song, during the pre-chorus sort of phase, when Dave sings 'Told me...Told you'. The rest is kind of monotone and boring. 5/10
Sermon - An interesting song to close the album. A song completely bashing religion. I guess if listeners were offended and turned it off because of this, they would've already listened to the rest of the album first. Being an atheist myself, this song really speaks to me. It features an actual deviation from choruses, verses, and bridges that are just recycled riffs from earlier in the song. The vocals are also catchy thoughout(lol, it seems like this is all I'm rating these songs on). A great song to close off the album. 7.5/10
Pros:
-Dave's vocals serve to make each song catchy and cool.
-The highlights on the album are truly worth it.
-These are all fun songs to sing along and bang your head to
Cons:
-Besides Dave and the occasional cool guitar part, the band doesn't do much but slam on their instruments.
-Most of the songs follow the same pattern of clean vocals verse, rough vocals chorus, clean vocals verse, rough vocals chorus, etc.
-Some of the songs can be really hard to get into.
Recommended Songs:
Sinner
All Over You
I Am
Follow
Sermon