While I am still somewhat new at reviewing albums, I feel that an album worthy of five stars has to be very special. The album must be musically and lyrically strong. It must flow well and have no songs that slip below the standard of excellence. Furthermore, the album must be creative, convey powerful emotions, and truly express the faith and beliefs of the artist.
Conspiracy No. 5 earned this honor.
While I loved Third Day's original self-titled album, the second offering from the Georgia-based rock outfit shows more consistency in its quality. There are no songs that you want to skip through, only a solid repertoire of good music. The album also has much better production than their first effort and just rocks from start to finish with Mac Powell's piercing vocals, coupled with the power of solid well-played guitars, a driving beat, and the effective BGV's used at the right times.
Although every song deserves mention, I have managed to pick my top few. "Peace," the album opener, starts off sounding like Jars of Clay and ends by blowing your ear drums away. (Don't crank up the volume too much in the first 10 seconds, or your speakers will be toast.)
"You Make Me Mad" talks about the influence of music, both good and bad. On the Third Day website, the band elaborates on this, making the listener realize that whether we like it or not, all of the music we listen to has an impact, either good or bad.
"How's Your Head?" is a song Mac wrote from personal experience. One night when he was on the road with the band, he called his wife Aimee, and she said that she had a bad headache. The following night when he talked with her again, the first thing he said was "How's your head?" This song takes that story and uses it to show the real-world loneliness experienced by a band on tour with their families left behind. It allows the listener a peek into the real lives of the band members and certainly shatters any thoughts about how great it must be to tour in a band.
"Alien" takes the common meaning of the word (creature from outer space) to add a spacey feel to the song, and then in the actual lyrics, uses the less common meaning of the word (someone who is not a citizen here) to talk about one's life as a Christian. The song brings out the hardships experienced by believers as "aliens in a foreign land" and how we as Christians are absolutely dependent on the protection of our deliverer, our heavenly Father. (Third Day also used this literary technique in the name of the album, but I'll let you ponder that one for yourself. Here's a hint -- get out your dictionary.)
"Have Mercy" rocks big time. If you're not singing along, then get your hearing checked, because this song's incredible. The melody is very catchy, and the guitars driving the song just seem to push the listener to jump up and dance!
"Gomer's Theme," a ballad taken from the book of Hosea in the Old Testament, tells the story of Gomer (the unfaithful wife) and Hosea (the man who loves her despite her unfaithfulness). Here's a sample from the lyrics about Hosea's steadfast love for Gomer:
She couldn't be
Foolishly
More unfaithful if she tried
He did not care
Wanted her
Despite lies and wandering eyes
He deserves the very best
But he loves her none the less
The rest of the song relates how God has this same kind of steadfast, loyal, "never giving up," kind of love for us. No matter how sinful we are, no matter how far we go from Him, He will never, ever quit loving us!
Finally I have to mention the gem, "My Hope Is You." It starts off as a gentle ballad and then breaks into powerful, rock 'n roll praise and worship music.
As for the songs I didn't mention, you'll just have to listen to the album yourself. If you think that I'm hyping this album too much, you're wrong. This album is destined to be a classic.
5/5
Other coverage for this album
The Lighthouse December 1997Reviewed by Bert GanglThe self-titled debut release by Atlanta's Third Day sold more than 200,000 copies, produced four number one singles, earned a Billboard Video Award, and even garnered a fair amount of airplay in the general market. With the success of the first album, the release of the follow-up project has been the source of both anticipation and curiosity among critics and fans alike. And, as almost always…7ball #14Reviewed by Beth BlinnFans of Third Day's self-titled debut on Reunion Records should prepare themselves for the growth that is displayed on the band's sophomore release, Conspiracy No. 5. The Atlanta-based band upped the aggression ante somewhat, while still retaining their penchant for melodic hooks. Of course, three years have passed since much of the material on the first album was recorded for the band's…The Phantom Tollbooth 1997Reviewed by Mark J. AylorWell, well, well, what do we have here? Third Day is back with the follow-up to their self-titled debut, and this one smokes! Gone is most of the Little Feat flavor that kept me from raving about their first release. The band's musical sound is definitely alternative now, with the Black Crowes' southern rock leanings barely noticeable. These guys have really grown up. Their music has a much…The Phantom Tollbooth 1997Reviewed by Josh SpencerI remember being a young teenager and hearing my first Christian rock album. I thought it was so cool that it sounded exactly like one of my favorite non-Christian bands but with Christian lyrics! Then as I grew older I learned that Christian bands imitating "secular" ones more often than not simply reinforced my unsaved friends' opinion that there is nothing genuine or original about…The Phantom Tollbooth 1997Reviewed by Steven S. BaldwinPower pop Pearl Jam-esque praise music. To be fair, Pearl Jam isn't the only influence. Other sonic snippets arouse the reminiscence of many other bands, including such diverse inspirations as The Cure and Alabama. Despite the lack of uniqueness and anything spectacular by way of music or lyrics, they've created a captivating mesh of encouraging lyrics and mostly upbeat sounds. The underlying…Similar sounding releases
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2001Come Together
2000Offerings - A Worship Album
2004Wire
2002The Offerings Experience (Video)
1999Time
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