Review Summary: Gonna get this party started.
Thousand Foot Krutch is now in the middle of an identity crisis; once a really acclaimed and respected band from the christian rock/metal scene, now they are getting immensely bashed, most notably by their critically-panned album Inhale (although Exhale is a step in the right direction), but you, that maybe doesn't even know these guys, may be wondering: "But these guys ever made something good?"
Yes, they were always good, with their most approved album being the stellar Phenomenon. But while TFK is mostly known to be a nu metal and alternative rock band, their early days are proof that the Krutch were really young, with one song being different from one another; and this album is Set It Off, their first debut album, depending on who you ask. (we are principally going through the 2004 remaster, which sounds bettet for my ears)
Set It Off is to TFK what Fungus Amongus was to Incubus, an album that showcased the band struggling to establish a sound that would be familiar with them, but with both cases, they weren't actually bad at all, if the lack of consistency didn't get right in the way of the listener for certain tracks.
First, the album starts off with a forgettable intro, that warps into "Puppet", which is probably the album's best song in its entirety, which a really harsh "into-your-face" feel from the guitars, drumming and overall edgy feel, with the lyrics being your familiar christian themes, with props to Trevor's rapping on the album, which is actually pretty good, mostly on the rapcore/funk metal track "Supafly", which is weaker in sound than "Puppet", that has a harsh nu metal sound instead.
And while we are dosed with "Supafly", we are graced by "When in Doubt", which is a...
...pop punk song.
Yes, after some songs that would be really at home for rap metal fans, we are hit with a pop punk song which has the sound of something Blink-182 would actually pull off back in 2001; the song is so out of place in the album, that you could shove it into a FM Static album (which is actually formed by some members of TFK), and nobody would even notice that it is actually a Krutch track. But as a track on its own, it's pretty good, although it's not really original.
And then the album has some other gems and forgettable songs; and when the ride through the CD is over, you will be left wondering why Thousand Foot Krutch did an awful, unimaginative album like Inhale, when Set It Off showcased a young band with really cool ideas for a christian-themed album, with the album showcasing nu metal, rap rock, funk metal, pop punk, and alternative rock. Overall, this is a really cool debut that should be listened by anyone that is in the mood of something that is pretty different from what is showcased in the modern scene, although the remaster is the most polished album, oh, and by the way, the remaster has sone extra songs that were actually found on their very first release back in 1997.
