For hockey fans, “five for fighting” is a phrase well known for aggression, rage, and pure emotion. For music fans, the phrase is only associated with the last one.
With their newest album, The Battle for Everything, the group was hoping for more of a “band” feel, rather than lead singer John Ondrasik with back-ups. On first opening the CD, it would look like they didn’t succeed. On the cover is a photo of Ondrasik, and the only photos found within are of the lead singer himself.
Once the CD starts spinning, it’s a different story. Throughout the 12 tracks, there are robust back-up vocal parts and instrumental riffs. “NYC Weather Report” started the CD off with the right feel. With a relaxing, slow groove before the vocals, it’s a calming influence straight off the bat. The song is genuinely likeable for no real reason. The lyrics aren’t amazing, and the music is not enough to knock your socks off, but the song still carries very well.
The three featured songs, “The Devil In The Wishing Well,” “If God Made You,” and “100 Years” promote the feeling of a band, with a lyrical genius at the lead. “The Devil In The Wishing Well” features a hearty string arrangement in the background, with Ondrasik cutting through on vocals and piano. Although the lyrics are filled with emotion, the band never resorts to senseless screaming, which is refreshing. Upon careful listening, the lyrics are quite creepy, but deep and thought provoking.
The second featured song, “If God Made You” can be a little less easy on the ear; Ondrasik is pushing the edge of his vocal range, which is a gamble that didn’t quite pay off. The lyrics get lost when he goes up in the range, which is a huge loss. There’s still a decent balance to the vocals, thanks to the harmony. An intriguing background guitar part makes the song worthwhile.
Perhaps the best-known song from the album is “100 years.” This song was released as a single in 2003, but this is its first appearance in an album. It starts with a very mellow piano interlude, and goes into Ondrasik’s vocals. Although the song gets repetitive, the lyrics are very good, provoking thought and emotion. The band uses instruments to evoke even more emotion, with well-timed guitar or piano solos. With all this in the song’s favor, it’s no surprise that it climbed up to 10 in the Billboard Adult Top 40 charts.
“The Taste” provides a great stepping stone for Five for Fighting. It shifts often between soft and loud, fast and slow, and gentle and harsh. The common problem with the non-featured songs is that they get boring and repetitive; they don’t vary speeds, sounds, or lyrics enough to keep the listeners active and interested.
A major weakness of the album is its arrangement. After “NYC Weather Report” and the three featured songs, the songs all seem to run together. Perhaps if the three featured songs were spread throughout the CD, it would hold interest for longer. As it is, listeners could lose interest after the sixth or seventh track, when all the songs start to sound the same.
This album is great for calming anger. After a tough hour, day, or week, a few minutes with the soft sounds of Five for Fighting could cool the emotions, or at least soothe any headaches, heartaches, of life problems.
If this is your first Five for Fighting experience, The Battle for Everything may not be a good starter CD. Their second album, America Town, is much more appropriate, has their hit single “Superman [It’s not easy],” and climbed all the way to the top of the Heartseekers charts in 2001. Their first venture, Message for Albert is also recommended for fans, but new listeners should stick with listening to America Town.
