Sevendust - Black Out The Sun

One of those bands you can never get away from.  But then again, why would you?  Atlanta's Sevendust have continued to rock our hard rockin' hearts out for 16 years now and from what I have heard in their latest album, they don't seem to be slowing down.  Taking a three year hiatus seemed to be just what the guys needed before heading back into Architekt Music Studios and pumping out 13 tracks.  For their ninth studio album, Sevendust released "Black Out The Sun" on March 26th, 2013 via Asylum Records.

For BOTS, The Sevendust crew consisted of:

Lajon Witherspoon - lead vocals | John Connolly - guitars, backing vocals | Clint Lowery - guitars, backing vocals | Vinnie Hornsby - bass guitar | Morgan Rose - drums, backing vocals

1. Memory
2. Faithless
3. Till Death
4. Mountain
5. Cold as War
6. Black Out the Sun
7. Nobody Wants It
8. Dead Roses
9. Decay
10. Dark AM
11. Picture Perfect
12. Got a Feeling
13. Murder Bar



13 pounding tracks self produced by Sevendust themselves.  Seems that the group had a working formula going when it came to song composition and structure.  After pumping out track after track for 8 LPs spanning over 13 years (97's Self titled - 2010's Cold Day Memory), you think by now they'd have it down pat. (haha)

"For that album we went in with very little material, and it was really exciting and we had a good time doing it. "It was fresh. We didn't overthink stuff too much. So we kinda sold the rest of the guys on trying to do it that way. We were maybe a little apprehensive going in, but it worked exactly the way we had hoped. We didn't have any songs, but everybody grabbed their station and kind of picked up whatever needed help or work, and we were able to bang out it with nothing but riffs. It was really from the cuff, y'know?" -Morgan Rose

Sevendust took it upon themselves to record/produce this album.  The band tends to have a hand in the production of all their albums, as Morgan Rose and/or Clint Lowery seem to be on the credits for most of the previous work.  This is the first time that Sevendust as a whole was credited for producing an album since their 2005 LP "Next".


[After three years] "I think it did wonders for us.  It was a good break for us. We liked being around each other again. We appreciated each other and each other's talent. The people want to see us a little bit more now. We want to be out there a little bit more now. I think it helped in every aspect -- in the (song) writing as well." -Morgan Rose

Ted Jensen took control of the master engineering for BOTS.  You can check out Ted's extensive credentials spanning back to 1976.  Some of the many notable musicians are Norah Jones, Iron Maiden, The Eagles, Madonna, Duran Duran and more.  His collection spans almost 2500 albums!

Even though I have never been disappointed with a Sevendust album, I see a consistent amount of progression with each album.  "Seasons" had great receptions and instantly grew with fans of the Headbanger's Ball series, featuring the single "Separate".  "Next" was a album that drew me right back into the Sevendust fold.  The they hit us with another amazing album "Alpha" and only to be met afterwards by "Chapter VII: Hope & Sorrow" and "Cold Day Memory".  BOTS is an album that true Sevendust fans want to hear.  It was met with proper timing, clarity and structure.  Well done gents.

Recommended tracks that I can agree with would be:

Faithless | Till Death (*a must!) | Decay | Dark AM