AMG Review of Us and Them

Johnny Loftus
All Music Guide

Shinedown's 2003 single "Fly from the Inside" blended atmospheric Alice in Chains references with a lumbering post-grunge sound similar to Nickelback. The debut LP Leave a Whisper offered more of the same -- a satisfactory sound as rock radio filler, but ultimately pretty calculated. But it became a hit, certainly due in part to radio support, but mostly because of the Jacksonville, FL-based band's reputation as a great live act. The quartet played something like 400 shows over the course of 2003 and 2004, and that gelling process is unquestionably a factor in the more realized hard rock sound of 2005's Us and Them. Shinedown frontman Brent Smith channels Chris Cornell (or at least Alter Bridge's Myles Kennedy) on opener "Dream," but the song's grunge theft is forgiven by its airtight groove. Shinedown have been road tested, and they prove it again on "Trade Yourself In" and "Yer Majesty." The band still relies a little too much on formula on Whisper. "Save Me" and "Beyond the Sun" are direct descendants of 3 Doors Down, for example, and at other times they sound like they're aiming for power ballad crossover success. However, Shinedown's sophomore effort is definitely a step forward. They have a rewarding hard rock album in them somewhere.