Of all the albums released yet, All Hope is Gone is by far the best. What they've done is split thier sound from nu-metal to what basically amounts to 2 half-albums: one is a pummeling thrash set reminicient of Slayer (Gematria [the killing name], Wherin Lies Continue, the title track) and the other an accessible, mellow hard-rock album (Dead Memories, Gehenna, Snuff)Now, let this be clear: The good FAR outweighs the bad on this album, and the bad, well... isn't really too bad. In any case, it's worth buying the whole album.
The heavier tracks are in all respects, keeping metal alive for the masses. Gematria in particular is a grueling tour-de-force that molds with the anti-war lyrics like butter on bread.If you only have 1.29$ in your budget, get this one. All hope is Gone is a more Iowa-influenced track that old-school slipknot fans will greatly enjoy.
The softer tracks, however, take a different route, gliding the listener on an emotional trek into themselves. Snuff a melodic, almost emo-influenced track that will have mainstream rock fans and metalheads alike humming on long car and plane rides.
The only tracks I really have a problem with is "Dead Memories" and "Gehenna", which, unsurprisingly, are the most popular songs off the album. They fuse almost pop elements into what should be a rock band. Skip these is you have a tight buget, but if not, buy the whole album because they're still better than most crap on the radio today (shall i point to Chris Brown and Rihanna anybody?)
As far as appropriateness goes, I don't see what commonsensemedia.org has against this album. Well, actually I can because I read the review, but I still think it's biased and misinformed. What exactly does "Agressive...general music style" have to do with age-appropriateness?! This album has some of the best political commentary I've seen in a long time, and same with the music. The swearing is infrequent, and, in reality, only serves to help drive the theme of the album: Which is questioning our values and leaders and finding flaws, something that should be done more in our world today.
Bottom line: if you're a mature 13-year-old, you should be able to handle this album no problem. If you're a parent: BUY IT. It is a milestone in modern mainstream metal, if not the history of metal. Not only that, the exeperimentaion in musical style and lyricism is unprecedented. What are you waiting for?
Oh yeah, and stay (sic) maggots!\m/ (-_-) \m/