The Illusion Of Progress

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Average Customer Rating:	3.5
Release Date:	2008-08-19
Publisher:	Atlantic
Artist:	Staind
Track 1:	This Is It
Track 2:	The Way I Am
Track 3:	Believe
Track 4:	Save Me
Track 5:	All I Want
Track 6:	Pardon Me
Track 7:	Lost Along The Way
Track 8:	Break Away
Track 9:	Tangled Up In You
Track 10:	Raining Again
Track 11:	Rainy Day Parade
Track 12:	The Corner
Track 13:	Nothing Left To Say

Product Categories

Post Grunge; Alternative Metal; General; General AAS; General; General; CD Album; Enhanced; Explicit Lyrics; Main Albums

Product description

Riding on the success of their last three chart topping albums,
Staind is back with the highly anticipated release of their sixth
studio album, The Illusion of Progress. The new Flip/Atlantic
recording will be released on August 19th with the first single, Believe, hitting radio on June 24th. Staind' s last 3 studio
albums have debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 Album
chart, putting them in an elite class that includes U2, Metallica,
Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews Band, Van Halen, and Disturbed.
Over the past decade, Staind has sold more than 15 million
records worldwide. They' ve had four #1 singles that span three
different radio formats, including two massive crossover
singles, It' s Been Awhile and Right Here (certified RIAA
gold). But the band has never let their massive success get to
their heads, lead guitarist Mike Mushok says that above all the
band values a record that we love, and after that, we want
other people to hear it, like it and be able to relate to it. Working
with renowned producer Johnny K on the album, it will be impossible
not to love what Lewis considers the band' s most musical CD
with songs that are pretty timeless in their texture. Staind will
be on the road all summer with 3 Doors Down headlining shows
in over 40 cities across the country before joining Nickelback
in September to continue the tour internationally.

Customer reviews

« Staind is BACK - almost! »

I agree with other reviewers that Aaron Lewis is one of the best songwriters alive today. I loved the early Staind albums and thought they went too soft and too shallow with 15 Shadews of Gray. The singles on this album (eg; All I Want) are not my favorite and seems a bit of a sellout, but there are otherwise some amazing tracks on here (Tangled Up In you, Raining Again). There may never be another song like "It's Been Awhile" (Break the Cycle), but I am enjoying this album thoroughly.

Rating: (4 out of 5) @ 2009-01-02

« Best since BTC (I think) »

This is a great album and Staind's best since Break The Cycle back in 2001. It seems like theyve gotten back on track after two lackluster albums in between. I'm very pleased with this album.

All songs listenable and fluid.

Rating: (5 out of 5) @ 2008-12-31

« this staind album is sure to be a crowd pleaser »

I bought this audio disc without having previous works to compare it to. I really only recognized one song in particular that is played a lot "All I want" but I do like several other songs including "The way I am" "Believe" "Break away" and "Raining Again". The more I listen to this album the more I like it. After this purchase I am for sure going to sample some of their earlier pieces of work. I would recommend this album for anyone who is a fan of staind will love these songs.They have a style that unique and different from others.

Rating: (5 out of 5) @ 2008-12-24

« Nu-Metal? Perhaps, But Everything Else is A Pale Imitation »

I'm an older music fan. I've lived thru the Classic Rock era, Prog Rock, Punk, New Wave, Pop, Glam, Hair Metal, Speed Metal, Reggae, etc. And I enjoy everything from Jazz to Black Metal. I've seen it all, boys and girls. And I have to tell all you fake, pseudo, poser, music reviewers, this is probably one of the worst eras for Rock music I've ever witnessed in my life. Most of the Metal and Rock has absolutely nothing to say! And no way to say it! There is almost no originality anymore. The bands all sound exactly the same. British Synth Pop, Death Metal, Post Metal, Metalcore, Mathcore, and yes, especially Nu-Metal. And songwriting? Forget it. It's gone the way of the dinosaur. No more Black Sabbath, Zeppelin, Robin Trower, or Bad Company. I can sample a 100 new Metal or Pop albums and I hear maybe one that sounds unique. No one will remember the bulk of these bands. I'll remember Staind.

"Hey, man. It's not cool to listen to Staind anymore. Dude, they've lost their edge." Afraid of what your friends might say? Maybe your friends are fools. So, to you music snobs that make it a hobby to bash this band because it's not the kind of music you enjoy, you wouldn't recognize a well crafted Rock song if it jumped up and bit you on the nipple. I fart in your general direction, sirs. It all sounds like sour grapes to me. You wish that they would continue recording in the style of their first two albums over and over, but you complain that they're recording the same album over and over. You wish you were making the kind of money that this band is making. (I know, I know, "It's not about the money. It's about the music." Yeah, that's what musicians say when they're not making any.) You only wish you could affect people with music the way that Aaron Lewis does. What a bunch of frustrated musicians and welps. You complain that all Aaron does is whine. Take a look in the mirror. If you're all so self-righteously happy in your musical proclivities, I have a Doris Day album you can have. Right now.

For my money, along with Travis Meeks from Days of The New, Aaron Lewis is probably one of THE greatest straight-up singer/songwriters I've heard in Music in the last twenty years. PERIOD! I know that's a bold statement, but I STAIND behind it. (Oooo, sorry.) I'm in my 40s, and the last time I broke up with a chick, I wasn't listening to a Frank Sinatra album, Radiohead, Tool, or Emperor's Anthems to The Welkin at Dusk. I was playing a Staind album. Me, I'll take Aaron Lewis and Staind when I'm feelin' down. Everytime.

How many artists can write a song about their daughters, and make it work? Do any Rock artists know how to just sing a simple song, anymore? Not many. Aaron Lewis' lyrics are tragic, sad, tender, cathartic, heartfelt, painful, and just downright beautiful. His words are full of alienation, hope, despair, love, longing, frustration, and life. All the things that are required for a songwriter to speak to this music fan.

I have to agree that these other bands are just copycatting this dreaded Nu-Metal style. Nickelback, Breaking Benjamin, Evans Blue, etc. (This sub-categorization of music is the dumbest part of Rock music to ever come down the pike. What a bunch of alienating nonsense, invented by music snobs with nothing better to do.) There is nothing wrong with enjoying different styles of music. As long as you can appreciate the best that a particular genre has to offer. Staind is THE best at what they do. They are original. Everything else is a pale imitation. The bands that progress beyond the limits of their nature and experiment too much, usually fold. If I like Staind, I wanna hear Staind. I'm pleased that I can count on Staind sounding like Aaron's cries in the night. So what if people call it Nu-Metal or Emo? For some, life is painful. For others, the world is on fire. "Bartender, I'll have a Xanax and a Red Bull." You never get depressed? Yeah, right. I bet you never get any chicks either. So what if the heavier edge is gone from their music? You should have figured that out by now, spendthrift. Aaron Lewis and Staind are mellowing. And maturing. (Yeah, I said it. Wanna fight? Anytime, music snobs. I'll run you over with my Harley.) And unlike the last Cannibal Corpse album, I can actually sing along with their music. Which just becomes more dignified with every album they put out.

Thanks, for gettin' me thru some tough times, Aaron. I dig your music, man. This is a f$%king GREAT album! Keep making goods ones. And I'll keep buying 'em.

As long as you turn it way up, this album is heavy enough, in all the right places. Constructed around Aaron's lyrics, this one definitely contains the softer, soulful side of their sound at times. Which I prefer, seeing as how I'm as old as Methuselah and all. When all is said and done, it's a beautiful mix. (Another music snob fallacy: If music has a commercial feel, it's worthless. An absolutely closed-minded and ludicrous viewpoint.) It would be apropos to take Staind out of the sticky morass of Nu-Metal and place them in the wide open field of Music. I see the album title as a tongue-in-cheek stab at critics that accuse them of making the same music over and over again. Or Aaron has discovered a hard truth about getting older: The more things change, the more they stay the same. Works either way. It moves me enough to give it Five Star status. Best Riff: Rainy Day Parade! Best Song: It's a TIE! Tangled Up In You! Wow! and Raining Again! If you APPRECIATE Staind, you don't want to miss this album. It's one of their BEST, and a worthy addition to their catalog.

Everyone that hates this band, your buddies just voted you out of the band, and your mom is yelling at you to clean up your room.

Everyone else,

ENJOY.

Rating: (5 out of 5) @ 2008-12-11

« A Little Soft But..... »

...This CD has it's track or two but I think Staind has gotten to soft with this one. I still like the music but if you are looking for the old staind, they have gone AWOL..