Album Reviews

Appropriately self-titled, the fourth studio release from Mississippi rockers 3 Doors Down is everything an eponymous album should be, delivering few surprises amidst a steady stream of fan-friendly fare. Traveling safely down a manicured road to middle America, the 12 songs speak with an unwavering voice that flirts with optimism while dancing with patriotism and enduring reality. The timely anthem "Citizen/Soldier" is upbeat and amplified, while the ballad "Let Me Be Myself" tears a page from Relationships 101, a lyrical textbook that sees plenty of wear throughout the album. Add a violin to frontman Brad Arnold's warm twang, and "It's The Only One You've Got" and "She Don't Want The World" could be cowboy hat-wearing country hits, but without the violin they play like cogs in the same contemporary hit machine that fuels the mid-tempo radio relevance of Bon Jovi, Nickelback and Chris Daughtry.

The bulk of the album remains true to the band's southern, guitar-driven roots, but the album's standout is "Your Arms Feel Like Home," a can't-miss, feel-good ballad that should be the band's biggest hit to date and promises to fill more dance floors than "The Electric Slide" as this summer's wedding season approaches. There's something to be said for being consistent, and 3 Doors Down have made it an art form.

Paul Gargano
06.11.08