While anticipating the release of Sevendust's Animosity, I couldn't help but wonder how it would sound. I knew Angel's Son was absolutely beautiful, but would most of the album be that way? I wasn't quite ready for an entirely new, mellower Sevendust. My fears disappeared the moment I put the CD in and heard the hard-hitting sounds of Animosity. Sevendust had stayed true to their loud image while showing a perfect amount of their melodic nature to create their best album yet.

Animosity opens with T.O.A.B., the album's most aggressive track. Raw, heavy, and angry, this track will ensure the volume is cranked up from the get-go. What follows is first single Praise, which really picks up the pace. Praise's choppy but catchy chorus is delivered forcefully and creatively to make this one of the album's most memorable tracks. As the album winds down, Redefine brings back that raw loudness one last time.

Plenty of other tracks keep the heaviness alive while maintaining an emphasis on melody, making a majority of tracks hard rocking yet easy on the ears. Trust is fairly laid back, limiting shouts to brief appearances, but crunching guitar riffs and forceful vocal delivery keep the energy high. Crucified is reminiscent of Black - hard-hitting verses with a smoother, very catchy chorus. Damaged stays aggressive throughout, but the captivating chorus is one of the album's finest.

Some of the Animosity's biggest highlights come when Sevendust combine their heavy side with their melodic side in such a way as to create uplifting tunes that remain unmistakably hard rockers. Dead Set is easily one of the album's strongest, with its exceptionally powerful chorus: "One single life needs not to die/ For such a cheap price/ For one last flight." Lajon's Witherspoon's unique voice simply soars as he delivers this stirring track, and the same goes for Live Again, a moving song with inspirational lyrics: "All your life you've been led to believe you're nothing/ So look at yourself and start to live again."

Sevendust also show they are not afraid to delve into softer territory. Xmas Day is beautifully heartbreaking, mostly in the stirring chorus: "I could break/ Into a/ Million pieces/ So just run as fast as you can for me/ You mean everything." The album closes with Angel's Son a gorgeous song about losing a loved one. Originally done as a solo piece by Lajon, the rest of the band lends a hand in this version. In both, Lajon delivers simple, heartfelt lyrics for a fallen friend. Angel's Son is a song anyone can relate to and use to get over pain.

Released in 2001, this album easily fit in with the nu-metal scene of the day due to its hard sound and aggression. But after listening to Animosity you'll find that it didn't really fit into that genre all that well - it transcended it. Sevendust found emotions other than anger to convey, and they conveyed them brilliantly by finding the perfect balance between hard rock and heartfelt melodic rock. Sevendust is a consistently excellent band, but thus far, Animosity is the album of their career. Start here if you haven't yet because you'll soon find you can't stop.


Also from Sevendust:

Sevendust ::: Home ::: Seasons ::: Next ::: Alpha ::: Chapter VII: Hope & Sorrow

Recommended: Yes