SKILLET: Dominion
“To be more than a conqueror, you have to learn to enjoy the pain. If you want to survive the game.”
Thus starts the new album from Skillet with a blistering track that might soon be heard in arenas at sporting events in the future – “Surviving the Game.”
They sure have come a long way since their self-titled debut in 1996 on Ardent/Forefront Records. It took ’em awhile to find their voice, but find it they sure did with 2000’s Invincible album (and title track). They found the dark side of their sound and the’ve never looked back. They’ve dialed up edge and aggression using keys and cutting, distorted guitars and interesting beats and musical changes. They immediately jumped into the credible hard sonic realm of Linkin Park, the world of gaming, and sometimes Marilyn Manson. References come in threes, so add the band Red, who later join this small club of cool bands.
Critics are like belly buttons. That’s the safe /Sunday School way of saying this. They might say Skillet is formulaic or sell outs. I cry nay to this accusation. I say they’ve stuck to their guns. Kudos to them for continuing to lead the way and doing it with conviction, zeal and passion.
What I like about Skillet is the dark and distorted edge brought by their twin guitar attack. Some metal purists, with belly buttons intact, might take issue with the word metal in this conversation, but spend one minute talking to bassist/vocalist John Cooper and you might see him grin from ear to ear when you bring up bands like Messiah Prophet. It’s an obvious influence and one could benefit from wearing ear protection when seeing Skillet live.
“Valley of Death” is another excellent contribution to a growing collection of songs based upon Psalm 23. It pinpoints something the band has seemingly dialed in on for decades now – speaking the heartfelt language of teens foraging through the tumultuous years of life in our modern world of depression, despair, drama, and debt. Appealing to that demographic with light and hope – no wonder this band is multi-platinum. The lyrics could be just as big a factor as the music to explain this band’s success.
The addition of Jen Ledger’s vocals gave Skillet its Chester Bennington to Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda.
“Standing in the Storm” has cool divebombs and other sound effects thrown in for good measure. “Dominion” is another standout single that rocks hard and fast. “Destroyer” features some cool bass-bending electronic action. “Forever or the End” starts off like the perfect hangover song. “Can’t believe the weekend…how did I get here? Then it appears to be an amazing make-up song. “It’s never too late to start over again.”
“White Horse” is a powerful apocalyptic rock song, ending the album on an epic moment with unexpected additives, like hip-hop vocals. Somewhat reminiscent of many other modern rock hybrids – not close, but not too far away from a tune like U2’s “American Soul” or “Get Out of Your Own Way.”
Skillet fans have much to love and not a single note to hate with Dominion, standing strong in its canon of hard rock albums. Newcomers or foreigners to this group would do well to give it a listen.
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