Review: Stone Sour- Hydrograd
It\’s been three years since we last had a new record from Stone Sour, and when they began gearing up for the new album- Hydrograd- they said it was the most dynamic and diverse record yet.
They couldn\’t have been more dead on as they go in a few different directions, musically and it works well.
“Hydrograd opens with “Ysif,” which is a powerful instrumental opener that sets the tone early, leading into “Taipei Person/Allah Tea,” which is one of the strongest songs on the entire album. It’s a fast-paced adrenaline rush that’s catchy as hell and then “Knievel Has Landed” keeps it going before the title track “Hydrograd” slows things down for a bit.
This brings us to the first two singles- “Song #3” and “Fabuless,” which join “Taipei” for the top three tracks of the record. “Song #3” is your classic Corey Taylor ballad (I.E. “Through Glass,” “Dying,” or “The Conflagration”) that gets stuck in your head while “Fabuless” is in the vein of songs like “30/30/150” or “Made of Scars.”
\”Rose Red Violent Blue (This Song Is Dumb & So Am I)” is a trippy rock experience that fits perfectly after “The Witness Trees” while “St. Marie” is the biggest surprise of the album- it’s a stripped down acoustic country-fried serenade that will take you off-guard if you aren’t ready for it and it’s one of the best tracks on the band’s sixth offering.
“Mercy” is an intense thrill ride that takes things right back up to the max right when it needs to and the rest of the album- “Whiplash Pants, “Friday Knights,” Somebody Stole My Eyes” and “When the Fever Broke,” finish things off in a way that makes you start right back at the beginning and play it to the end again.
When it’s all said and done, Stone Sour have done everything they said they would do. They’ve followed up a two-disc concept album that knocked it out of the park and they’ve come right back and done it all over again.
This is by far the most diverse and dynamic album Stone Sour have written yet. It’s got stuff that fits in with material from each of their previous five albums and they’ve grown leaps and bounds musically. Being the first record with the current lineup, the expectations were high and they surpassed every single one.
Rating: 9/10
-Reggie Edwards