It’s really hard to define the eclectic sound of Ever Stays Red. Promoted as a band for fans of Anberlin and My Chemical Romance, ESR gets really close to breaking through with a signature sound, yet no one song seems to carry the album. In contrast, the basic sound of each song seems to melt into the next until you’re left with a lot of good stuff, but nothing great. In contrast, the lyrical content scores big with thoughtful lines including those found in the anthem Letters: this voice inside us will be big enough to face what’s wrong/and to speak of what could be.

Wow. What else can you say about an album that comes out of the gate with one smash hit after another. Listening to Meant to Live, Dare You To Move, Stars, Oh! Gravity and others puts an exclamation point on just how big of an impact Switchfoot has made on the music scene in a relatively short period of time (although the artwork inside the CD jacket reminds us that Switchfoot languished for years as a minor Christian alternative band prior to the Meant to Live tsunami). If there is a tinge of disappointment here it’s in the omission of some of their early “hits” such as New Way To Be Human which would give newer fans a better feel for the band’s roots.

Anberlin’s artistic progression continues with a brilliantly produced new CD that combines a restless musical energy with a revolutionary-charged spirit that shines through on songs like The Resistance: we will hold together/to become the change/voice for the voiceless/with every common man engaged. In the song Burn Out Brighter (Northern Lights) the message is clear: Live, I want live inspired/Die, I want to die for something/Higher than myself/Live and die for anyone else. Other standout tracks include that haunting song of surrounder Breathe and the bittersweet Retrace. Watch for New Surrender to catch fire on national charts soon.

Capturing the raw energy of a Skillet show on a canned CD is a tough feat, but this band has managed to pull it off with this new release. Packed inside Skillet’s pounding signature sound are lyrics touching on a wide range of issues from cutting to parental reconciliation to loneliness. At one point of the show, lead man John Cooper explains the CD’s title as a call for a comatose generation to awaken and change the world. One of the original Pro-Life Music Festival headliners, Skillet’s live release underscores why many consider their show one of the best live acts in rock ‘n roll.