Review: Sevendust – ONE
Napalm Records – (May 1st, 2026)
Reviewer – David Brighouse
This is the 15th Full-length LP from the Atlanta heavy metal quintet, bringing 10 new hard-hitting tracks which carry their distinctive stamp, but also shows that the band continue to evolve even 30+ years into their career.
The album opens with the title track ‘One‘ which opens with a siren-like effect before exploding into life, but it’s not all full-on attack as the song has an interesting progression and a great chorus. Second single ‘Unbreakable‘ starts slowly with a simple pulse and piano (which reminded me of Linkin Park) before the vocal and other instruments kick-in to give us what, both musically and lyrically, could easily be the theme tune to a super-hero movie.
Lead single ‘Is This The Real You‘ kicks off with a strong riff which drives the song along, again the chorus is a strong point and do check out the great video online. Latest single ‘Threshold‘ also has a strong video which depicts the band being brought back from the dead and ripping it up back on tour, which is exactly what they are currently doing, albeit not at the behest of a money grabbing tour manager. ‘We Won‘ is more laid back with a real alt-metal groove and interesting guitar solo.
‘Construct‘ has their trademark staccato rhythm and ebbs and flows to good effect. ‘Bright Side‘ is a more straight forward and accessible, but with engaging twists and turns. ‘The Drop‘ is more of the same, strong vocals, interesting progressions and great playing. Blood Price has an almost operatic start before the rhythm section blast in and the screams give way to Lajon’s vocal, the screams and growls continue throughout the song and with an extended guitar solo make this the heaviest track on the album. Final track ‘Misdirection‘ is the longest track, a real curve ball unlike anything else on the album, a chance in the mainly vocal first 100 seconds for all the vocalists to contribute before the pounding rhythms take over, and is a track that swings back and forth between the vocals and rhythms, an intriguing finale.
Taking a cue from the video for their latest single, and following stories that the band almost called it a day prior to recording this album, listening to the themes dealt with in the songs on this record, it has the feel of a band, who having come a long way together, feel they are on the brink of a new chapter with this release, and I can’t say I disagree, it’s a great rock album, interesting, consistently good vocals and playing and well worth checking out.
Track List:
- One
- Unbreakable
- Is This The Real You
- Threshold
- We Won
- Construct
- Bright Side
- The Drop
- Blood Price
- Misdirection
Line-up:
Lajon Witherspoon – Vocals
Clint Lowery – Lead Guitar, Backing Vocals
John Connolly – Rhythm Guitar, Backing Vocals
Vince Hornsby – Bass
Morgan Rose – Drums
(Photo Credit: Chuck Brueckmann)
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