Awake
Artist: Skillet
Label: Lava / Ardent / Atlantic
Length: 12 tracks / 43:13

Skillet’s 2006 release Comatose has become the group’s best-selling record, creeping up on certified gold status. It also angried up my blood somethin’ fierce with its desperate attempt at mainstream appeal, blatant idea theft, and piss-poor lyrics apparently penned by a fifteen year old drama queen. Awake delivers more of the same, but ­ and I can’t believe I’m saying this ­ with nowhere near the balls of Comatose.

Confused? Don’t be. Comatose was not a very good record, but it was HUGE. Larger than life, all over the place, like a brainless summer blockbuster ­ not really great, but at least it was completely over-the-top. SKILLET AS DIRECTED BY MICHAEL BAY. It provoked responses in people, be it effusive praise or utter hatred. Awake, on the other hand, plays it completely safe, delivering generic radio-friendly rockers and mid-tempo ballads like clockwork. It’s Comatose Part II, but with-out the sheer glorious idiocy. It’s a shame, too, because the opening duo of “Hero” and “Monster” are tremendous arena-rock anthems. Just like Comatose, however, it all goes downhill after a hot start…

The production is nothing special; big, major-label rock stuff but with little to give the project any distinct sonic identity. If you’ve seen Skillet perform in the past couple years or heard their recent live disc, you already know that John Cooper’s voice is completely shot; how many takes did it take to get usable vocal tracks? Particularly on the slower material, the strain is almost unbearable. New drummer Jen Ledger contributes female vocals to a few songs, and the difference between her voice and John’s is night and day. She’s got pipes ­ it wouldn’t shock me to hear the next Skillet album shunt Ledger into the lead vocal spot… Ben Kasica gets a few opportunities to shine with guitar solos, but there’s no “Savior” here for Kasica to really display his chops. The lyrics continue to be directed to the 17-and-under crowd. While less insipid then those on Comatose, they lack the unusual/violent imagery found on earlier Skillet material… or the sheer intensity of Collide (sidenote: I think Collide contains Cooper’s best lyrical output, hands down). It’s worth mentioning that on “Forgiven,” Cooper steals from himself, blatantly cribbing the bridge from Alien Youth song “One Real Thing” (”Get down on my knees / feel your love wash over me”).

Skillet may not be doing anything tremendously original, but when they do it well ­ as on “Hero” & “Monster” ­ it works. The heavier tracks on _Awake_ fare best; “Awake & Alive” is solid, while “Sometimes” isn’t too bad. Largely, however the band’s sautee of Nickelback, Linkin Park, Evanesence and Kelly Clarkson is bland, pablum, milquetoast ­ unremarkable and unmemorable, inspiring neither offense or excitement.

At least Comatose had the decency to suck EPICALLY.

Ryan Ro [www.RNSrobot.com | www.twitter.com/RNSrobot]