Back in 1998, a roar began to grow from Florida. A young upstart band named Creed dominated rock radio all year long with strong melodies, heavy guitar hooks, a powerhouse rhythm section, and a fiery lead singer named Scott Stapp. Stapp's lyrics reflected his confusion over his strict religious upbringing, yet had other underlying themes that were both universal, especially to young people, and easily related to. That first album, My Own Prison, went multi-platinum.

In late 1999, Creed released the 10X platinum Human Clay, a very disappointing record that showed the band hadn't grown much. Stapp's writing lost all of the underlying themes, he struck some Jesus like poses, and the religious imagery in the songs brought down what, musically at least, was a decent enough record, even if not very adventurous. That could be excused since many of the Human Clay songs were written on the road during the My Own Prison tour.

Today, Creed released their 3rd album, Weathered. One could take a few meanings from this. Creed has "weathered" the dreaded sophomore sales slump. They "weathered" the loss of their bass player after he made some not so kind comments about the Pearl Jam comparisons and Eddie Vedder. However, what is truly "weathering" is the shocking lack of growth this band has undergone musically in the 3 years they have been in the eye of the mainstream. What follows is a track by track overview of this record, followed by an overall summation.

Bullets: The album opens with music gradually creeping in while Stapp does spoken word for the first verse. Interesting change. As the song comes crashing to a head, though, one thing is clear: this song rocks. Guitarist Mark Tremonti really shines on this song. Stapp, however, tries his hardest to sound like Layne Staley on the verses, and then on the chorus, it's unclear if he's trying to be Scott Weiland or if he's trying to recall the ghost of Jim Morrison. Lyrically, it's a rather abstract song, although the spiritual images that pervaded Human Clay to the point of making this reviewer mad begin to become clearer as the song progresses.
Music:B+ Lyrics:C Vocals:D+

Freedom Fighter: Two songs in, and the ultimate message so far is that the band is focusing much more heavily on Tremonti's riffs, ala My Own Prison. Just one problem: I think I've heard this one before on that record. Lyrically, I'm not big on this song, although I do like the chorus. It is an almost perfect description of the situation America is in right now:
I'm just a freedom fighter
No Remorse
Raging on in Holy War
Soon there will come a day
When you're face to face with me
Music:C Lyrics:B+ Vocals:B-

Who's Got My Back: Indian chanting intros this song. I'll give Creed a pat on the back for that. As that fades out, some ringing guitar notes come in, and Stapp begins to sing gently. Upon looking at the lyrics, the word "deceptive" should be "deception." It would fit the song and the overall message much better ("When all we have left is deceptive, so disconnected"). Unfortunately, the song becomes a power ballad. This song had potential to be a good ballad, a nice soft number. Instead, after 8 minutes, you're left scratching your head.
Music:A- on slow part, D on harder part Lyrics:B- Vocals:B

Signs: Lyrically, this looks to be Stapp's attempt at spiritual righteousness. He attacks those who attack him, as well as sex because "the whole world is buying." Musically, you've heard this before. It reminds me of What If? from Human Clay, especially the repetitive "can't you see the signs?" Also, drummer Scott Phillips, throughout the first four songs, has a seriously uncreative obsession with cymbals not seen since ex Pearl Jam skinsman Dave Abbruzzese.
Music:D+ Lyrics:F Vocals:D

One Last Breath: The guitar melody of this song recalls a few of Creed's past hits: Torn, What's This Life For etc. The strings that came in on Who's Got My Back return again to add a layer to the music. As for the lyrics, I don't like them. Again, way too spiritual and Christian-like for me. I will say I love the chorus ("Hold me now, I'm six feet from the edge, and I'm thinking, maybe six feet ain't so far down"). However, it too becomes a power ballad and I am truly starting to wonder if Creed will ever write a asong that stays soft and intimate throughout.
Music:C Lyrics:C+ Vocals:C+

My Sacrifice: The first single, and it may as well be called Higher, Part Two. The lyrics try to be uplifting, but unlike One Last Breath, which succeeded to a point with that, this fails miserably. The song shows no great growth musically or lyrically for the band. How pretentious can one get?
Music:D Lyrics:F Vocals:C-

Stand Here With Me: The best song on the album by a mile. Stapp's vocal delivery is different that anything else that I remember him singing, and this song, much like Higher, puts a smile on your face. It's tough to explain. Sure, it's kind of a power ballad, and personally I think it's pretty obvious who Stapp is singing about, but it has a hidden element not unlike that of Lifehouse's Hanging By a Moment where one can interpret what they wish. It's this lyrical quality that made My Own Prison so good, and it's this quality that makes this song so good.
Music:B+ Lyrics:A Vocals:A

Weathered: Again, the melody on the guitar sounds too much like previous Creed material. Tremonti really needs to find a new tuning to play in, otherwise this band is never going to grow or truly mature. This song makes me feel like I'm just going through the motions, probably because it sounds like the band is doing the same.
Music:D+ Lyrics:C- Vocals:D+

Hide: This is the second best song on the album. Tremonti's work is simple yet effective, creating a nice atmosphere for the song. Stapp's vocal delivery is nice as well, very similar to Stand Here With Me, but with more soul in his voice. The lyrics are poor again, focusing too much on the same topics, but Stapp has written much worse.
Music:A- Lyrics:C- Vocals:B+

Don't Stop Dancing: Holy sh*t!!! An acoustic guitar!!! That was my first thought when I heard the beginning of this song. I knew it was too good to be true though, and sure enough, the overbearing electric guitars and the power chords come in and make this the 3rd or 4th power ballad on the record. It's a shame too, because I really think Tremonti could do some great stuff acoustically. I see this song as one of two sequels to With Arms Wide Open. Nice solo by Tremonti, but not nice enough to rescue this song.
Music:C Lyrics:D+ Vocals:C+

Lullaby: The other sequel to With Arms Wide Open that I mentioned just now. The soft song I wanted is here, although it ultimately is disappointing. The lyrics are just as cheesy as something out of the Backstreet Boys catalog (oh bring on the Not Helpfuls for THAT comment!). This song is a dud...and a guaranteed hit.
Music:B+ Lyrics:D Vocals:B-

As a whole, Weathered fails to truly captivate me or my attention. You've heard what Stapp is saying before, he's just saying it now in new songs that don't show any true growth or maturation, at least for the most part. Even Tremonti, the usual lone bright spot in the band, seems uninspired at this point, even though he always looks happy. And Phillips, the powerhouse drummer, plays well once he gets over his previously mentioned cymbal obsession. Ultimately, if you want a "spiritual" rock album, go find The Joshua Tree by U2 (you know, for the 3 of you who don't already have it), or even the Live album, Throwing Copper.
But stay far away from this one, otherwise you'll feel weary and weathered from listening to it.

Recommended: No