Abandon - Control

One of the bands that has really picked up momentum in the last year or so has been the five-piece pop rock group from Texas known as Abandon. Although their debut album, Searchlights, was mostly a mix of songs that Abandon had previously released on a series of EPs, their anticipated sophomore project, Control, is virtually all fresh. There is more energy (including a dance element) in Control than Searchlights, but this release never feels less professional than the first album. Instead, Control actually runs smoother than its predecessor behind "Feel It In Your Heart," "New Years Day" and "Under Fire." The rockier tunes sound less choppy this time around (particularly "Push it away"), and the album in general has better production than Searchlights. The biggest flaw musically in the album, however, fortunately is only the encore appearance of Abandon's hit song "Hero" which seems a little cheap. Abandon offers more direct lyrics to go along with their more pop oriented music which works when delivering easier themes, but it also means the lyrics are less thoughtful (e.g. "City Lights" and "Providence" from Searchlights). Still Abandon challenges listeners to know and live their faith in both "Live It Out" and "Under Fire," while the idea behind the album's title is brought up in "Let Go." Overall, Control is a nearly flawless pop/rock album which is a terrific song or two away from being outstanding.

Style: Pop/Rock
Street Date: April 19, 2011

Track list:

01. Feel It In Your Heart (3:12)
02. Help (3:38)
03. Live It Out (3:45)
04. SOS (2:53)
05. Your Love Goes On (4:00)
06. Let Go (3:55)
07. New Years Day (4:21)
08. Talk To Me (3:05)
09. Push It Away (2:40)
10. Under Fire (3:20)
11. Why Does It Take So Long (3:36)
12. Known (4:09)
13. Hero (3:46)

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