My Crazy Music Blog
It was only a matter of time before Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington got bored. Sure, Linkin Park released the track ‘New Divide’ on the Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen soundtrack this past summer, but with the band not slated to enter the studio until next year, it wasn’t going to be long before he followed in the footsteps of fellow LP cohort Mike Shinoda (Fort Minor) and released a record through a side band. Well, Dead by Sunrise is that side band and Out of Ashes is that new record. Bennington just simply picked up the phone and called some of his friends – Amir Derakh, Ryan Shuck, Brandon Belsky and Elias Andra – of Julien-K, and formerly of Orgy.
Bennington is as damn brilliant as ever fronting Dead by Sunrise, but fans should already expect that. Sure, the argument could be made that bits and pieces of Dead by Sunrise’s debut album, Out of Ashes could have very well been used for the next Linkin Park album, but those making those arguments need to look below the surface, starting with the albums dark subject matter. Out of Ashes is a concept record that follows the story of man on a self-destructive path who is trying to recover, a story many believe parallels Bennington’s own life and problems with drugs and alcohol (listen to the lyrics of ‘Crawl Back In’). Regardless, the album touches on a lot of subjects including intense anger, disconnection, depression and despair.
Beyond the obvious reasons to continuously compare Linkin Park and Dead by Sunrise, Out of Ashes is a record that surely has the strength, and legs, to stand up on its own. There are a couple of pitfalls to keep in mind with this disc however. One, more than likely Dead by Sunrise is merely a side project, which is horrifically unfortunate because there is obvious potential here. And two, it would have been nice to see the band delve a bit deeper into electronics with Out of Ashes. You would think that any band that is mostly Julien-K would take more electronic chances, but it is what it is so to speak. The record doesn’t simply fall short based solely on its lack of electronica. Album closer ‘Morning After’ is as far as they go when it comes to that, and not only does the tracks driving force and pulsating rhythms make it memorable, they make for the track to be one of the records best.
Out of Ashes plays like a proverbial sonic highlight reel, with one excellent work after another, no matter what you’re in the mood for, as Out of Ashes houses some of the very best vocals Bennington has ever recorded, Linkin Park or otherwise (‘Give Me Your Name’), melody laden, visceral ballads (‘Too Late,’ ‘Let Down’) and passionate charges (‘Inside of Me,’ ‘My Suffering’).
Out of Ashes is a tremendous first offering from Dead by Sunrise, and it would be just plain criminal is these guys didn’t get a second chance to shine for us all.