Well, one thing you'll notice upon your first listen to Staind's new album, "Chapter V," is that frontman Aaron Lewis seems to have moved past the "high on life" attitude he toted throughout much of 2003's ironically titled "14 Shades Of Grey." Not to say he's angry again, but gone are such sweet ballads as "So Far Away" and "Zoe Jane." If "Chapter V" is like any Staind album, it's probably best compared to "Break The Cycle." Taking turns between moody, introspective ballads and raw, in your face cuts that are likely to inspire a moshpit. Although they are far from reinventing themselves, Staind take a little bit of their past, and update it, and mix it up with feelings of today. In the past,they took things to extremes. If you wanted to kill yourself, "Tormented" would be your soundtrack. If you finally found inner happiness, "14 Shades Of Grey" would be your cup of tea. "Chapter V" takes the challenge of balancing all those emotions. From low lows, to high highs, all the bases are covered on this one album. I think it's safe to say that Staind have created an album that will appeal to most everyone.

With David Botrill (Tool, Silverchair) producing, and with guitarist Mike Mushok sporting a lush head of hair, Staind are back. "Chapter V" begins with one of the best, "Run Away," which takes things to a new level for the group. Mushok's guitar parts are more expressive than ever, and truly define this one song. It's a perfect way to kick off things, with a song that carries so many dynamics, much like the entire album itself. Fans of the group will find familiar fare in the mid-tempo, semi-ballads "Right Here" and "Schizophrenic Conversations," but the group truly reaches it's peak with the mezmerizing and touching "Everything Changes." On the other end of the spectrum, "Paper Jesus" and "Falling" will most likely appease fans of "Tormented" or "Dysfunction." It's important to note that the lyrical content of this album takes things in a whole new direction. Aaron seems to be a bit more ambiguous this time around with his messages, which is actually quite refreshing, from someone who wore his feelings on his sleeve for four albums prior. The tone of the album is neither negative, nor positive. Yes, the man found happiness, as was well documented on the last album, but he obviously still is living on planet Earth and still has things on his mind, which is what "Chapter V" is all about. It's not whiney, it's not preachy. It's not angry, it's not joyful. It is quite simply, human.

While the album as a whole isn't perfect, it is still a five star album in my eyes, for it takes Staind to a whole new level. Now, at their fifth album (wow, time flies), they seem to be settling into a comfort zone, where they can handle all dynamics, where they are above and beyond the competition. The musicianship on here is excellent, a notch above, and Aaron's vocal deliver is stellar as always. Anyone who has followed Staind this far will find much cause for celebration with this album.

Poor Staind. No one ever seems to understand them. Their first two albums, "tormented" and "dysfunction" were hits, showcasing staind's heavy blend of hard rock, and frontman Aaron Lewis's screwed up family angst. But after "dysfunction" staind started to play down the heaviness, and focus on their musical abilities. Lewis dropped the screaming for the most part, but his angst stayed the same. Still, all the wimps hiding behind their message boards talked crap.

With this, their fifth release, Staind continue pretty much where "break the cycle" and "14 shades of grey left off" the lead single, right here, is a breathtaking piece, followed by many more. I recently saw Staindwith three days grace and hurt on the Jagermeister world tour, and their show was a breathtaking experience for me, my girlfriend and our 2 friends.

So everyone who doesnt believe in evolution...stop talkin crap and go listen to your crappy pop-emo bands.........stop disrespecting legitimate artists like staind

Everyone I've heard listen to this so far has told me that it's sounded like 14 Shades Of Gray. I listened to this CD, and I have no idea what they're talking about. Save for maybe one or two songs, the whole CD sounds like it's on a different level then 14 Shades

I found the songs Run Away, Right Here,Falling and Please to be my favorite on the CD. This CD is a lot heavier then 14 Shades. It's more along the lines of Break THe Cycle, with remnants of 14 Shades. The song Paper Jesus is DEFINITELY more like Break THe Cycle, borderline Dysfunction.

The only track I didn't really like was Cross To Bear. I didn't find it to be a standout track.

All in all, the CD is excellent. A must have for a fan of Staind.

Pure f**king brilliance.

Those are three words that defines the quality of this album. Staind offer us this 12-track album, Chapter V, a fantastic mix of pulse-hammering guitars and incredible vocals. Tracks like "King Of All Excuses", "Cross To Bear" and "Paper Jesus", deliver insanely heavy guitar riffs combined with the awesome vocals of frontman Aaron Lewis. Meanwhile mellower songs like "Everything Changes" and "Trippy" are thrown in to slow the momentum down. Every song on this album scores ten out of ten, as I just can't find any flaws in any of them. The best track, I think, is "Cross To Bear". Excellent chorus, great guitar riffs and a chilling opening are only a few of the things that make the song so good.

But don't let me describe every song for you, find out for yourself and go out and buy this album now.

I have purchased all of Staind's albums and am in the process of purchasing all their single's releases through Amazon.com. Staind is now number 2 behind Lifehouse as most listened to artist in my extensive musical library. 'Chapter V' is the limited edition CD with a bonus enhanced DVD. I will discuss both CD and DVD separately. Staind has been around since 1995 and in the decade since their birth they have matured as a band through experience and gaining wisdom in the cut-throat music industry. Aaron Lewis as the frontman/lead vocalist of this 4 man band has such a powerful and amazing voice. The song topics are excellent and based and rounded on today's societies issues and pains. Staind is J. Mysocki, A. Lewis, J. April & M Mushok.

The CD/DVD comes enclosed in a book version with a full written history of the band from 1995 to present. Also each page has thoughts from different members of the band and reasonings behind the songs as well as full song lyrics for all well-known Staind songs. The booklet covers the 5 CD releases as well as pictures from tours and live concerts and promotional materials and posters. This is truly amazing and I am in awe of this booklet.

Secondly the DVD is packed with bonus material that will make any devout Staind fan happy. I thoroughly enjoyed the DVD and it was lengthy and full of band trivia, and interviews with each member of the band individually as well as a group. The documentary went for a bit over 30 mins and shows the everyday life of the band and what they do for a living. It shows how each member has to make sacrifices on the tour road but also reveals how they love performing for the fans. The end of the documentary was very touching where it cut to Lewis at the back of one of the concert stage rooms and he thanked the fans for their loyalty and said this fighting back tears. Staind is a group that are still grounded and show loyalty to the fans. The DVD also shows a full video of 'Right Here' at one of the concerts in Boston. And live perfomances of 'It's Been Awhile' & 'Falling'. This DVD is a must for any Staind fan - it gave me a smile and made me realise how STAIND is such a wonderful group and only made me strengthen my support and love of the band.

The CD covers the 12 songs of 'Chapter V' including the hit singles 'Right Here' and 'Everything Changes'. For me the songs of 'Falling' and 'Cross To Bare' are my favourite songs of this album being sung at a highly emotional level by Aaron Lewis. However what stands out on this CD is the 5 bonus songs that are included. I was excited when I learnt of the bonus songs and listening to them I am not disappointed but very stoked. The bonus songs included 'Let It Out' a cover for Peter Gabriel's hit song, 'Novocaine' a rare song by Staind that was until now just a demo. 'Reply: Original Version' this song is better than the album version and quite different as well. I find listening to this song it has helped me clear my head and the song beat is soothing and yet vibrant. 'Its Been Awhile' is acoustically sung by Aaron Lewis who also does guitar. 'This Is Beetle' is also a rare song from demo stage that is acoustically driven. Excellent songs and I listen to these bonus songs regularly.

In summary, Staind has excelled again in another release with 'Chapter V' ensuring that this is just another brilliant stepping stone for this talented band. Long live Staind!