Staind - Staind Review

Posted by Ben Czajkowski on 09.13.2011

Staind returns with their eight studio album that promises to be a heavy return to their roots! But how does it stack up with the rest of their catalog? 411's Ben Czajkowski checks in with his full review!

It’s hard to believe that, roughly fifteen years ago, Fred Durst outright rejected Staind after he was offended by their album cover for Tormented. If Staind’s performance didn’t change Durst’s mind, I wouldn’t be writing this album review. I never would have randomly bought Dysfunction from a Boulder campus bookstore, while on a Jesusfest retreat. I never would have listened to “Outside” fifteen thousand times. And Staind surely wouldn’t be fighting to regain their identity and energize a quickly aging fanbase, which has grown up (in theory), as Staind’s career begins to reach its twilight.

Staind, the latest and self-titled release from the group, is promised to be a return to their roots. The band, however, has to do it without drummer Jon Wysocki, who departed, in May. Wysocki did provide the drumwork for Staind, just so we’re clear, upfront. Aaron Lewis is fresh off the release of his country-fied solo work, which has done moderately well; it’s still on the Billboard Top 200, at the time of this writing.



1. "Eyes Wide Open" 3:30
2. "Not Again" 4:34
3. "Failing" 5:26
4. "Wannabe" 3:49
5. "Throw It All Away" 4:24
6. "Take a Breath" 3:56
7. "The Bottom" 4:15
8. "Now" 3:44
9. "Paper Wings" 4:23
10. "Something to Remind You" 4:07

Let’s face it: Staind has a lot on the line with this album, not just in terms of satisfying a decade’s worth of fans, but it is due or die for them as a band. This recording process caused a lot of tension, among the members. Lewis can now, easily, strike it on his own; I think we’ve known that for a while. He’s not full of that cathartic, depressing anger he had ten years ago; yet, he still remains ever introspective. Many fans, including myself, asked, “How is he going to recapture those demons” for our listening pleasure, especially when we were promised a return to roots? I’ve heard that promise a million times before, and I’ve been heartbroken 999,987 times.

Well, if you’re looking for acoustic-themed, alternative rock, mainstream rock Staind, you’re not going to find a ton of that, among these ten tracks. “Eyes Wide Open” opens the album with a quick, sludgy, hard rock feeling that harkens back to the Staind of yesteryear with heavy riffs and the poeticism of “Open Your Eyes”. Speaking of “Open Your Eyes”, “Eyes Wide Open” quickly usurps the former as my favorite opening track, to a Staind album.



“Not Again”, the first single, is definitely heavier than anything they’ve released to radio, in a good number of years. Despite the post-grunge feel, I definitely find it catchy and worth a repeat. “Failing” has a familiar, Alice In Chains feel to it, and I found myself bobbing my head. At first pass, I was left with the impression that it was mostly forgettable (a feeling that never passed), though, especially after hearing the next track.



The biggest surprise on this album is - hands down (your pants) - “Wannabe”, a blatant stab at the group’s “faceless” haters who have called the band sellouts for softening its sound. When I first heard the rap-rock opening, I had to check to make sure that I was listening to Staind and not Limp Bizkit:

“I'm selling records
What is it that you do?
Sitting in your mama's basement with a shiatsu
Peanut butter on your dick
Right hand going click
With your left hand giving you a rim job”

I never thought I’d fire up a Staind album and hear anyone singing about “rimjobs” and I was clearly not expecting Snoop Dogg to be doing guest vocals. I never thought that the band fit into that “rock-rap” niche, when it came to nu-metal; now, I might have to re-assess that opinion.



Anyone who has spun the “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” soundtrack should be familiar with “The Bottom”. This was the first exposure I had to this “return to our roots” Staind, and I was blown away. Fans of band should easily be pleased with his well this fits into their sound, both lyrically and instrumentally. Mike Mushok does a fantastic job at carrying Lewis’ brooding.



“Gotta do something different now/It’s up to you/the path that you choose” - “Now” opens with a burst of speed that reminded me immediately of Rise Against. This actually caused me to give pause and take in exactly what I was hearing. It was the only song that I wasn’t familiar with that I listened to twice in a row before continuing. “Now” is comparable to more of the most recent-sounding Staind, from Chapter V and The Illusion of Progress with a big helping of experimental, instrumental sound. While much of the rest of the album is carried by the growls and anger of Lewis, this song isn’t reliant on that, giving it a fairly radio-friendly sound.

“Paper Wings” is the brutality that I wish “Not Again” should have had. The breakdown reminded me of “Wasted”, for some reason. “Paper Wings” would have been better suited toward the beginning or middle of the album. Pitted all the way at the end, I’ve had my fill of angst. That’s not a dig at the song; it’s a comment on the track ordering, really. A minor grievance.

Finally, we come to the introspective “Something To Remind You”. This is the closest thing that you’re going to get to an acoustic Staind song, on this album. This could easily be a farewell, from the band. I honestly got chills as I listened to this stark austere ballad; mentally, I connected it with “4 Walls”, in terms of instrumentals. I imagined the pain that Lewis put himself through to write this album, all summed up into this one track, potentially bringing their catalog to a close. Lewis and Mushok clearly will always have chemistry, and it’s easily captured and preserved evermore:

So, this is it. I say goodbye/to this chapter of my ever-changing life/and there’s mistakes/the path was long/and I’m sure I’ll answer for them when I’m gone

Top Three Recommended tracks:
“Eyes Wide Open”, “The Bottom”, “Now”

The 411: I have no way of knowing if this will be all-they-wrote, but if Staind were to call it quit after this album, I wouldn’t feel there were many loose ends remaining. Staind does a fantastic job of summing up the high points of this fifteen-plus year act into a solid album. Among the emotive anger of six-of-ten tracks, there are still signs of growth in “Wannabe” and “Now” that keep it from being a carbon copy. It’s been a long time since I’ve thought “wow, this is a great (or even good) Staind album”. Definitely extremely pleased to say that this is an album worth checking out.

Final Score:  8.0   [ Very Good ]