A Shifting Sound Into Longtime Pursuit: The Long Road

NICKELBACK: THE LONG ROAD

SCORE: 80/100 - 8

'The Long Road' acts as the bands much-needed shift in sound; and the drastic change in this album worked heavily in their favour. 

Much more hard-rock edged than their previous three albums, and this feels like the blueprint for 'All The Right Reasons' with songs that are rough, stupid fun at every turn. It isn't incredibly valuable or unique moment; but there's enough energy here to keep anyone stuck to it. 

This album acts as their most experimental project yet - and it manages to work exceptionally well. It's less consistent than some of their other projects when it comes to keeping up with the same sound, but it manages to outshine 'Silver Side Up' with some of their best tracks to date. This is what makes Nickelback such a genuinely redeemable band, the sound where the songs are infectiously catchy and full of eye-catching riffs from the very start - this album is where they really started to shine as a legitimate band after scoring their first major hit with their first album under the Roadrunner label. It's clear that an actual record deal is what the band needed to finally flourish, and this might just be one of the first consistently enjoyable Nickelback records at this point into their discography. The experimental steps they took in altering their sound would set the basis for all of their following albums, and hard-rock suits the band member's individual playing styles exceptionally well while letting Kroeger finally front the band to his fullest capabilities.  

The songs here are brighter, bigger, and much more full of heart and energy. Kroeger sounds much more consistent and original in his vocal deliveries, the lyrics are striking and delivered very clearly (making up a large part as to why they stick), and the songs are singalong worthy in every single moment present. Although it might not be the most deeply artistic sentiment, it's valuable enough to stick - especially in the context of the band's discography. 

It finally feels like the band has their own original sound without feeling like a parody of themselves, and the resulting album is genuinely enjoyable and highly unique from their other projects. They took a risk with reworking their sound and creating something new, and it provided a massive, relieving breath of fresh air that their discography so desperately needed. They needed a change after their first two albums and found success in their third - and this album was the most reasonable and cohesive follow-up possible. 

The usage of newfound double-bass drumming and dark, heavy riffs makes this album hit much harder than their previous efforts, and it truly manages to be one of their most impressive despite some moments that do show Kroeger's true, rough colours. 

This is an album that gets a horrible reputation for no good reason at all - and even though it isn't anything remarkably unique or thought-provoking, it's good, genuine fun. This is the kind of rock that you would hear in bars and the fights that occur - and it makes the perfect hard-rock soundtrack for any high energy night. There are moments on this album that bring back the dark, gritty storytelling that was present on 'Silver Side Up', with 'Throw Yourself Away' (which is written about a true case) being one of the album's most striking lyrical examples.

'The Long Road' is highly consistent, full of action-packed songs, and entirely fun. It's rock that is both palatable and memorable, and the mix of genres here makes for Nickelbacks signature sound on a much larger and much more enjoyable scale. The band further found their footing and learnt how to apply their sound and skillset on a much higher level - and it paid off remarkably well.