Shinedown – Threat To Survival (Atlantic)

Genre: Hard Rock

At a fraction over 40 minutes and chock full of stadium anthems this is a focused and efficient statement of intent from one of America’s foremost hard rock brands.

Shinedown have scored successive top 10 albums back home and this is the sound of a band that knows its ever-wider audience, knows its own mind and knows how to make its mark in a congested and fickle marketplace.

In fact don’t be surprised if Threat To Survival manages to surpass predecessor Amaryllis and break into the Billboard top three (some pundits are even predicting a chart topper for the in-form Floridians).

Where Cut The Cord treads familiar ground (crunching riffs, chunky verses and a big chorus) there are hints that a bigger play for even greater commercial success is afoot.

State Of My Head is Shinedown-lite pop rock, pure and simple and Brent Smith sounds less than convincing when he croons about ‘breaking down your door’. Set closer Misfits is more of the same and both songs may be a step too far for fans schooled on The Sound Of Madness and its overriding hard rock fury.

On the other side of the coin Outcast is furious and forthright, If It All Adds Up benefits from an edgy, almost industrial rhythm and Oblivion’s gospel-like intro cedes to a typically robust riff. As a threat to the survival of stadium rock’s bloated behemoths, Shinedown represent a clear and present danger. Simon Rushworth

RUSHONROCK RATED: 8/10 Survival Instinct