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As an avid Nickelback fan, I’d been anxiously awaiting the release of any new music from my favorite band. When I heard that they were working on an album with producer Mutt Lange (Shania Twain, Def Leppard, and AC/DC), my expectations soared. So when their latest CD, Dark Horse, finally hit the stores, I rushed in and grabbed—I mean bought—it.
Unable to patiently wait until I got home, I immediately threw the CD in my car’s player. Pounding rhythms gripped me from the opening cut, “Something in Your Mouth.” The pulsating beats, along with Chad Kroeger’s biting vocals, continued with the rapid guitars in my favorite track, “Burn It to the Ground.” Thrashing metal guitars highlight the decadent “Next Go Round” and “S.E.X.”
The songs of heavy partying and hot sex are irresistible, while the somber mood swings of ballads such as “Just to Get High” tend to slow down the momentum. You may even be tempted to fast forward past the single, “Gotta Be Somebody” if it weren’t for Chad’s cutting vocals, which save the song.
The 11-track CD concludes with the perfect ending and another favorite, “This Afternoon.” The catchy lyrics and tune will stick in your brain for days. Unfortunately, the rest of the album’s lyrics lack the versatility and depth of their earlier work, such as the unforgettable classic “How You Remind Me” from the album Silver Side Up.
I always expect a lot from this Canadian band, featuring Chad Kroeger on vocals and guitar, Mike Kroeger on bass, guitarist Ryan Peake, and drummer Daniel Adair. Therefore, it’s difficult not to compare Dark Horse to the 2005 All the Right Reasons—which was one of my favorite albums of the decade—and not be disappointed. Then again, how could anything measure up to that?
Though the guitar solos spark with greater vibrancy, this album doesn’t even come close to the originality and gripping lyrics of Nickelback’s earlier work. The group seems to have gotten stuck in their own style, without venturing out of familiar territory, thus losing the edge that they’ve been known for. Will they be able to break this? I don’t know, but, in the meantime, Dark Horse is still a fun and self-indulgent pleasure for Nickelback fans.
