Scott Stapp, the lead singer of Creed, has released his first studio album in eight years.

Stapp’s “Proof of Life” was released on Nov. 5. Stapp released his first album, “The Great Divide,” in 2005 after going solo as a result of Creed’s breakup in 2004.

Creed has since reconnected, and rumors of a new album in the works have been buzzing. However, the new album was recently abandoned and little is known if Creed is still working together.

Scott Stapp’s first solo album, “The Great Divide” received mostly neutral reviews with many leaning toward the negative side. Stapp’s new album has received much better reviews.

The album brings back the classic 2000s hard rock sound that many bands have either abandoned or broken up over because it does not prove as successful in selling albums today as it was in the early 2000s.

Stapp has stayed very true to his and his band’s style, which some might see as either a blessing or a curse. Loyal Creed fans are sure to jump on this album and love every song, but others who may have been hoping to hear Stapp’s vocals applied to a different style and sound will not be impressed.

Each song could easily have been tacked on to Stapp’s previous album, and even any of Creed’s previous albums. But even though they sound very similar to past songs, they are still worth a listen.

The opening track, “Slow Suicide,” is a high-energy, power-filled rock anthem, and the perfect song to kick off the album. The sound of the song is a harder, grungier sound, like a long lost cousin to Creed’s “Bullets.”

As the album progresses, the songs begin to get softer and lose the energy that the album was introduced with. As far as progression goes this is good, but it would have been nice to see the high energy tracks and mellow tunes alternate rather than the album essentially having two distinct halves.

As expected, the album contains many songs with Christian allusions, most specifically “Jesus Was a RockStar,” an ode to Jesus Christ and the various miracles he performed. For Creed and Stapp’s Christian fanbase, this song is a great asset on the album.  For everyone else, it might not be as interesting.

“Crash” is easily the best track on the album, a beautiful and self-empowering song about hitting rock bottom after shortly being at your very best. It has a lot of acoustic guitar and a chorus that is easy to sing along to.

“Crash” would have been the perfect song to end the album with, but Stapp decided that another song, “Dying To Live” would do it more justice. This song seems to repeat previous ideas throughout the album and it feels forced and unnecessary. The album would have been much better off without this song.

Overall, Stapp’s “Proof of Life” is a pretty good listen, and a step up from his first album.

3.5/5