"Planet Zero" is the 7th album by Floridian 4-piece Shinedown. I discovered Shinedown prior to their 6th album "Attention, Attention" coming out, which was released back in 2018. I enjoyed most of their albums. The first two albums I would describe as being good in patches. But from a sales point of view those 2 albums did launch them pretty quickly into being a pretty successful band. But to me it is clear that the change in line up which occurred prior to their 3rd album "Sound of Madness" coming out, really made them reach that next level. That line-up has seen them now through another 5 albums including "Planet Zero" in the form of Brent Smith on vocals, Zach Myers on guitar, Eric Bass on bass and Barry Kerch on drums.
I think the thing which struck me the most when this album was released was to find it was a 20-track album. This is not completely unusual in the industry at the moment. Kula Shaker, The Coral and The 1975 have all released albums in the last couple of years which are round about 20 tracks, and they are all good albums. But when I hear of albums having this many tracks, I do wonder how digestible the album will be in a sitting. Thing is though that although Shinedown haven't released a 20-track core album before. They have often released deluxe editions of albums which can have at least 20 tracks on them.
This time however, the reason for "Planet Zero" being 20 tracks is quite different as 7 of the tracks are more interludes. It's as if these tracks are from some 1980's sci-fi movie with a robotic female voiceover sending out powerful messages on the state of the planet, social media usage and mental health, to a synth driven backing track. This is something Shinedown have never done before and shows great creativity on their part.
So, this means it is in effect a 13 track album and what an absolute roller-coaster this rock outfit take you on. There are plenty of all out rockers on this, that will keep fans bouncing and singing along at their much-loved live shows. "Planet Zero" was the first single taken from the album and it is the epitome of this. The next single "The Saints of Violence and Innuendo" has my favourite riff of the album. It just feels so different and fresh. "Clueless and Dramatic", "No sleep tonight" and "Army of the Undepreciated" are some more absolute bangers. The drumming in "No sleep tonight" should be highlighted in particularly as it is so ferocious and lifts the song up so much.
There is one song on here which the band say, "is the most important song they have ever done" and that song is the 3rd single "Daylight". I remember the hype when Coldplay released "Fix you" and it is still one of Coldplay's biggest songs even though it was released in 2005. I can see similarities in the songs, both piano driven, both have a deep meaning that everyone can relate to. They both really strike a chord and are sung so powerfully. To me "Daylight" is in the same league of greatness as "Fix You". That is how good it is. Coldplay were three albums deep into their career when they wrote that. Shinedown are 7 and they are clearly a band who are still ascending in terms of quality they are producing even though they have been creating great albums for over 20 years now.
There is a lot of lyrics that hit home in "Daylight". But I think the main one is the chorus as Brent sings "It's amazing what the hard times can reveal, like who shows up, who walks away and who’s for real". Everyone goes through hard times, and I don't think there is a single person who can't relate to that line. But I think this song as well just sums up Shinedown. They are much more than just your average band. They have a purpose. A lot of people call music their therapy. But if you go to a Shinedown show it's like the best counselling you will ever get. The positivity and words of wisdom Brent speaks mixed with top notch tunes is something which makes them a truly unique and great band. And now this is really summed up through "Daylight" what they are all about.
Overall, like any album there are songs which stand out and float to the top as it were. But there are no bad songs on this album, and each have their rightful place. People talk about streaks artists go on in making good albums. For me this makes 5 for Shinedown. The only band I can think of that's done better than this is Alter Bridge with 7. This is how good Shinedown are and how good "Planet Zero" is.
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