Five Finger Death Punch caught the metal scene by surprise with their 2007 debut "Way of the Fist" - but that surprise came from album sales, not critical reaction. It's almost impossible for a metal band to do well commercially unless you've been around long enough to be established (e.g. Lamb of God's latest album) or you cater to a specific audience. I call it "tough guy metal." Most diehard metal fans call it garbage.
Either way you look at it, 5FDP did well the first time around. As most would assume, that means a follow-up was inevitable. And now we have "War Is The Answer."
Now I must admit, I did enjoy a few of the songs off of the Los Angeles-based metal band's debut, even if they served as nothing more than four-minute adrenaline bursts for the super-masculine, mainstream metal lover. In fact, I'm going to call them Disturbed Jr. The parallels are clear - balance of the melodic and aggressive, solid guitar work and tough looking mascots. It's just that Disturbed does it better.
But Disturbed Jr. - err, 5FDP - is not completely lost in their style. There just isn't enough good to warrant a recommendation for this album. The lyrics are tired and cliché ("Death can take me if I can't refrain / I'm not like you, I'm a dying breed," Ivan Moody sings on "Dying Breed"). The songs are practically carbon copies of the material on "Way of the Fist."
"Bulletproof" feels so much like "Salvation" that I sometimes confused the two. The band regurgitates the chorus of their smash hit "The Bleeding" on "No One Gets Left Behind" and "War Is The Answer" is just the sped-up version of "Death Before Dishonor."
It's a shame, though, because there are bright spots here and there throughout "War." "Far From Home" is easy on the ears (but hindered by awful lyrics) and the lead single "Hard To See" is pretty catchy.
If 5FDP ever breaks from the mold that's made them so successful (which is doubtful; why would they break away from a money-making formula?), I think something listenable could be produced. Guitarist Zoltan Bathory has the skills to carry the band in the meantime, but this album ultimately proves that no, war is not the answer.
Check out: "Hard To See"
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