After hearing the catchy single "Control" several times on the radio and on MTV, I decided to give these guys a chance. They sounded similar to Creed or Pearl Jam on their single, both musically and vocally, that may not be a bad thing, just a lack of originality. But I was totally surprised and have to give these guys credit, they have put out a very eclectic album that will appeal to just about anyone. The first song on the album is "Control", which is a good song musically and vocally, but the lyrics seem to contradict themselves. The next song "Drift and Die" starts acoustic but starts to hit harder towards the end, the fifth song "Blurry" is similar, these two are probably my favorites on the album. All around great songs. The third and fourth tracks, "Out of My Head" and "Nobody Told Me" are heavier, with good vocals and lyrics. "Out of My Head" is another of the highlights on the album. On "She Hates Me" they take a lesson from STP and put a poppy song in the album, the lyrics are funny, though. Cool song. "Bring Me Down" is another good, upbeat song, with a lot of guitar, similar to Nirvana. "Never Change" and "Basement" are two heavier songs before the album becomes acoustic again to finish up. "Said" and "P*** It All Away" slow down the album, both are good, but not as good as the earlier acoustic tracks. "Said" is more uptempo with cool bass and drum lines and heavy sections that give the track a little more force. Overall very good album, much better than anything Durst could put out and they are on his label. And to answer my question in my title, these guys are more than Creed-lite, possibly even better than the supergroup themselves. Recommended album for just about anyone, especially fans of Staind, Nirvana, STP, Pearl Jam, etc.

I've heard so many bad cd's lately, and I thought this was going to be another one of those cd's that has 2 or 3 good songs, I had heard She Hates Me, Control, and Blurry on the radio. And most of the cd's today have only a couple good songs...I put Puddle of Mudd in first, waiting for the disappointment. I skipped Control cuz I have already heard it and I wanted to know what the rest of the cd was like. Well then I heard the second track, called Drift & Die. I already started having second thoughts about this cd. I got anxious and skipped to the next song Out of My Head, and was impressed. But then heard #4, Nobody Told Me, and thought here comes the disappointment, cuz I didn't like this song at all, and still don't. So I skipped that song and #5 and 6, Blurry and She Hates Me. Which are good songs if you haven't heard them. Then comes Bring Me Down, which starts off like a Weezer song on the new cd, the way the guitars sound, and then when he starts singing it completely changes that idea, very good song. And then there's #'s 8 and 9, the two best songs on this whole cd! Never Change sounds kinda different from the rest of the cd, but is still very good. And # 9, Basement, is the best, it kinda reminds me of Breed by Nirvana. #10, Said, is also very good. And #11, Piss It All Away, I didn't like very much.

So why I rated this a 4 instead of a 5 is because of #'s 4 and 11. Those are the only songs that I don't like.

1) Control - 9/10 (It gets kinda old if you listen to it too much)
2) Drift & Die - 10/10
3) Out of My Head - 9/10
4) Nobody Told Me - 4/10 (I don't know what it is about this song, but I just don't like it)
5) Blurry - 9/10 (Don't listen to it too much or you'll be skippin' it a lot, just like Control)
6) She Hates Me - 10/10 (Um... Different...)
7) Bring Me Down - 8/10
8) Never Change - 10/10
9) Basement - 12/10 (BEST song... I'd suggest you get that song.)
10) Said - 10/10
11) Piss It All Away - 3/10 (Same as #4)

1. I'm already sick of comparisons of this band to Creed. 2. Wesley Scantlin does not sound like Eddie Vedder. 3. People need to quit labeling groups "post-grunge." Grunge was not a time period - it was, and is a musical style.

...and for the review. Well, the main reason I picked up this album was because of the single "Control." I played it in my car, waiting for dissapointment after Control ended, but to my suprise, the rest of the songs actually make the album worth owning. There is a consistent hardness throughout the album even on the "lighter" "She Hates Me" which is kinda of a wacky song...more fun than wacky.

What got me even more on this album, is this is one of Fred Durst's "star search" bands that he just found and happened to give a record deal (much like Staind...Durst's other mentionable). Puddle of Mudd shows that Fred Durst has actual musical taste, which is undetectible on his own albums...

Buy this album. Wont dissapoint.

Puddle of Mudd's debut album contains 11 songs, taking straight-up, earnest rock and mixing it with acoustic textures from time to time. Fred Durst has again discovered a band whose talent far exceeds that of his own, except that POM are much more rock-oriented. Lead single "Control" is a simple, catchy hard rocker that will get your head bobbing. Vocalist Wesley Scantlin sounds like a mixture of Kurt Cobain and Eddie Vedder. "Bring Me Down" and "Out of My Head" are reminiscient of Nirvana, while "Drift and Die" and "Blurry" slow down the tempo to create two decent power ballads. I know that there are many skeptics out there who will shun POM for being a soundalike band, but who out there today is truly original? In our current musical world of rap-metal that is quickly becoming stale, and teenage pop that comes a step closer to death every day, POM's rock-heavy debut album is a very welcome thing to all of you out there like myself who miss riff-heavy, head-bobbing hard rock.

Puddle of Mudd has come in to their own. I've seen them in concert, I listen to their music daily. I am not sure what's up with the bad reviews, but thinking it is someone with a grudge of some sort.

They are new. They are different. Blurry is about Wes Scantlin's son, it has a great message. Control is a favorite of mine as well. Love the lyrics the rythm of the music. The video is hilarious, as we all know what it's like to fall out with a mate. She Fckn' Hates Me is another favorite, it's funny and shows a fun side of the band. Give it a try. Listen to them. Go see them in concert- you won't be disappointed! They are a favorite of mine, hope they will be a favorite of yours as well!