The Best Album of 2008

Okay, so technically it came out in 2007, but it was re-released in 2008 and that's when I've been listening to it the most. It's Atreyu's "Lead Sails Paper Anchor."

Now, Atreyu purist call it their sell out album. But new fans of Atreyu will call it their best and refer to their previous stuff as just "okay." Some of their old fans call this "overproduced" but infact I think it's actually just professionally done.

It's got it's heavy side with songs like Doomsday, Honor, and Lose It. These songs are a lot like older screamo Atreyu but contain still a lot of actual singing. There are some obvious radio hits in Becoming the Bull and Falling Down (a great song about religious people who claim to have voices in their head from god).

Seriousness comes in a couple songs like Can't Happen Here which is all about how religious war is tearing the world apart.

"Does your God...
know my God?
This is how the world will end."

The song No One Cares is great however oddly enough I have a strange memory attached to it. As I was driving to pick up Mandar after work I happened to be listening to a song called No One Cares while passing a sign that said "Jesus Cares." Another serious song is Slow Burn which is generally about depression over addiction.

"And after this I feel as empty as the night before,
feel the pain and yet I'm still begging for more.
Masochistic, nihilistic, gurging wrecked up thoughts
My life's a mess and I can't find a way to fix it."

Apparently they saw ahead of time that people would bitch about their new sound with their new record label so they did the song Blow.

"Shut your mouth we've heard it all
Hypocrites and critics all
Can fuck off
We do this for our souls"

Lastly there are two epic songs that are best two on the album. When Two Are One and Lead Sails Paper Anchor. I can't really say much except download them and listen.