I’d be remiss if I didn’t talk about this album. Unfortunately I have an addiction to words like awesome, amazing, superb, etc. Fortunately they all seem to apply in the case of this album. From the opening track Godspeed Anberlin takes you on what is probably one of the best rock albums of 2007. Lyrically even at its most confusing they manage to not sound trite. I think I’ll just mention some of my top tracks from this album as the whole thing is great. Godspeed is amazing but I’ve already mentioned it earlier.

“Whisper and a Clamor” is another great rocker that starts with an almost dance feel. It moves into a dark verse with a haunting melody and than an anthemic Chorus. It is quite the song.

“Hello Alone” seems to be a cry in the dark. Another anthemic, almost U2ish chorus but with heavier guitars. As an aside I have to say I love the guitar on this album, it is definitely producer Aaron Sprinkle’s best album guitarwise so far. Stephen Christiansen’s voice is at its most expressive in this song.

“Alexithymia” is some sort of mix between a hard rocker and a ballad. The verses are quiet but not weak with a great bass line and a beautiful acoustic riff. The chorus is the hard rock part with great feel. The bridge and solo are great, it isn’t a wanker solo but a building, melodic riff, that takes you into the final chorus perfectly.

“(*Fin)” This song alone is worth the ablum, I was expecting an outro and instead got this wonderful 8 minute epic journey. The first part tells three stories, the first from the Stephen’s perspective. The second story is about a Father who leaves his family for an addiction, while at the same time being someone who is supposed to minister to others. The last story is about a “man of the cloth” who caused a boy to lose his faith. The standout line from the album is “We’re not questioning God, just those he chose to carry on his cross”. This moves into the heavy part of the song with a haunting instrumental leading into a beautiful childrens choir singing “Patron Saint, are we all lost like you?” It brought tears to my eyes. The song dims down into a quiet postlude that leaves a bunch of rhythm loops playing with the guitar laying down some chords that Stephen sings/monologues over. If you aren’t planning on buying this album than go on iTunes and download this song. Though you’ll be missing out on what is the most exciting album I’ve listened to in it’s been too long.

You can listen to the whole album for the present at myspace.com/anberlin.

5/5