War Is The Answer Review

Released: Sep 22, 2009
Genre: Groove Metal, Thrash Metal, Alternative Metal, Heavy Metal
Label: Prospect Park
Number Of Tracks: 13
Nu metal isn’t a dead genre. Five Finger Death Punch are a decently successful band, despite adhering to a 1990s era of metal which was much-maligned while selling records and launching many a career.

Sound:	7
Lyrics:	7
Impression:	8
Overall rating:	7.3
Users rating:	8.9
Comments:	97

overall: 7.3

Featured review by: UG Team, on september 23, 2009

Sound: Testosterone could be an instrument on Five Finger Death Punch’s sophomore effort, War Is The Answer. If you like crunchy metal with as much bark as there is bite and that has a little more balls than your average rock radio act, then War is the Answer will foot the bill and then some. FFDP traffic in short blasts of energy on this album. Most of the songs hover at the three minute mark and under; few last beyond three-and-a-half minutes, so these are efficient, get in and get out songs that follow the formula of a catchy, radio-accessible song, but FFDP aren’t that simple. We’re surprised, too. The drums on “Dying Breed” and “Hard to See” are like rounds of fisticuffs: fast, violent, and pummeling. The riffs are chunky and full of moshability on “Bullet Proof,” as well. While this sound was dominating those bought-and-sold second stage slots at Ozzfest, Five Finger Death Punch don’t sound like some industry-manufactured model coming down the assembly line. There’s attitude here. No, they’re not single-handedly reviving and resurrecting nu metal, but they are keeping it alive better than, say, forefathers like Korn. And while some of you readers may scoff at the notion of nu metal making a comeback, the genre did sell a f--k ton of records when it was in vogue, so there clearly are fans of this style. It speaks to someone, namely truckers and strippers in the meat and potatoes heartland. And if you’re a math teacher in New York City and the choppy snarl of the socially-charged “No One Gets Left Behind” or the sensitivity of the ballad “Far From Home” gets you by the jugular, we’ll that’s completely fine. // 7

Lyrics and Singing: Clean singing. Impassioned screaming. Like any good band looking to make an impact beyond the metal underground, Five Finger Death Punch plant their feet in two vocal worlds on War is the Answer. Vocalist Ivan Moody was once in makeup-slathered, major label neo-metal act Motograter – raise your hand if you remember them!- and the mother fucker can sing. The ballad “Far From Home” allows him to spotlight his clean, melodic vox, against some riffage that would make any 80s axe proud. He’s got an above-average bark that pairs nicely with his clean singing and the band’s mixed bag of tempos and riffing. “Walk Away” is a moody, Alice in Chains-inspired diamond in the rough, and it’s another platform for Moody to showcase his voice. There’s also a solo that could have been picked up somewhere in the 1980s, as well! // 7

Impression: There were a few sweet, Swedish melodies in the mix here. You’d think that Five Finger Death Punch were listening to In Flames or Soilwork here and there and that influence crept into a few moments of War is the Answer, and that’s to the aforementioned bands’ credit. Five Finger Death Punch should be easy to dislike, but they’re actually making a name for themselves amongst the Mudvaynes and Chevelles of the world, with that extra – natch!- punch and ability to go as melodic as they wanna go! // 8

- Amy Sciarretto (c) 2009

Comments

[webbtje]

Five Finger Death Punch don’t sound like some industry-manufactured model coming down the assembly line. There’s attitude here.

The whole point of every 'assembly line' nu metal band is that they had this 'attitude'.

Which usually became a bit pathetic when the band members were 40 and very, very rich.

[henkka_potku]

"Nu metal isn't a dead genre"
That is unfortunately true.

[Random3]

This album kicks ass! It's better than Way of the Fist I think, and pretty much every band member has improved noticably

[Random3]

And I might be wrong but I'm pretty sure FFDP is not nu-metal... it's groove metal

[lethaldosage45]

Why does this Amy chick always rate albums with a 7.3?

[larrytheguitar]

I hate this band, but this album is better than WotF.

[Sanitarium91]

henkka_potku wrote:

"Nu metal isn't a dead genre"
That is unfortunately true.

Indeed. Man this band sucks.

[schangatang]

lol.
its not nu metal... its groove metal.
wait..
its not groove metal. its alternative metal
wait!
its actually post thrash groove alternative metal.
wait!
its actually a broom

[mcfreaki]

I'm going to buck the trend here by saying that the first time I heard one of their songs, my balls were thorougly stomped by their awsomeness.

[schangatang]

yeah it is preety solid
production value has improved which is always nice ;D

[Rysis]

I hate when metallica fans come out to cry to topics. So im not going waste my time on you. Five finger death punch is like more Alternative metal than Nu metal, but i would drop it to metalcore branch since they have screamos too. Nu metal dont usually have screamos only disorted. Besides i think chevelle is bad example of Nu Metal, its more like Rock Mix. Mudvayne is good tho also Adema.

[maverick_137]

mcfreaki wrote:

I'm going to buck the trend here by saying that the first time I heard one of their songs, my balls were thorougly stomped by their awsomeness.

I would like to second this they are one of my favorite broom bands also.

[X DogBert X]

I heard good things about this band so i checked em' out and i gotta say that these guys aren't what they are hyped up to be. they sound too much like slipknot and their music isn't very interesting or original. this band is about as interesting as a wet carrot.

schangatang wrote:

lol.
its not nu metal... its groove metal.
wait..
its not groove metal. its alternative metal
wait!
its actually post thrash groove alternative metal.
wait!
its actually a broom

haha i had to quote that. ****ing hilarious man

[JBailey23]

i've seen reviews where people hated this album compared to the last .....so what they're saying is they hate that the dude finally figured out how to sing....hard to see is pretty good, it changed my attitude toward them, i hated wotf

[alliwant]

I don't care what genre they fall under, I'm liking what I'm hearing and can't wait to see them when they come to Glasgow later in the year.

[MXFNCK]

I like em. I think the Way of the Fist was better though. They shouldnt have covered that Bad Co tune.

[Vinushka]

Listen to this album parallel to Way of the Fist and realise that every riff, every intro and every bridge has been recycled from the last album. I'm not even kidding, go now, do it.

[layzejerze20006]

mcfreaki wrote:

I'm going to buck the trend here by saying that the first time I heard one of their songs, my balls were thorougly stomped by their awsomeness.

I second that. Don't really understand why people hate them so much, they're a serious angry band in my opinion and i love it, seems like every song you listen to is an adrenaline rush.

[im not mental]

i hate their vocals.
i don't like their guitar tone.
i saw them on mayhem fest 2 years ago and they were nothing special/douchebags.

that's my two cents on this band.

[MetalLlama]

"Nu metal isn’t a dead genre."

I was hoping it was.

[FearOfTheDuck]

This band aren't anything special. I saw the bleeding video a while ago, its ****ing gay. So cliched

[rob904]

i'll agree that they did recycle some riffs from the first album, most notabley the title tracks on both albums have identical feels. also the burn it down is just the riff from white knuckles inverted, but lets be honest here, every musician recycles their own stuff to make more music, if you don't then either you stopped writing when you ran out of riffs (props to you if you did) or your a lying douche-faggot.

[Misfit-FTB]

There okay, but what don't understand is that douche bags who don't like it have to waste there time and meaninglessly tell me it sucks.

[bassthunder]

And if you’re a math teacher in New York City and the choppy snarl of the socially-charged “No One Gets Left Behind” or the sensitivity of the ballad “Far From Home” gets you by the jugular, we’ll that’s completely fine.

Proofread much? Also, not everyone in the "heartland" is a trucker or a stripper. We're not ALL rednecks out here.

[Time Bomb]

Lots of riffs are recycled, which pisses me off.

[strat0blaster]

If you listen to the solo in The Bleeding, you're going to see that this isn't 'nu' metal anyway, which had ZERO solos.

I don't particularly like 5FDP, but they're definitely not Nu-Metal.

[strat0blaster]

Time Bomb wrote:

Lots of riffs are recycled, which pisses me off.

And every riff is recycled. Just because you personally haven't heard the riff it's no dissimilar to doesn't mean it's original. Everything's been done at this point.

[IlikeMetal]

Wow, it's amazing how polarizing this band is lol.

I love em personally, I know they're not the most technically proficient or poetic in their song writing, but they sure do put out some kickass tunes.

[eyebanez333]

I don't agree with them being called nu-metal...

[Dopey_Trout]

Meh this band are one of the ones that just fly under the radar to me. I don't dislike them by any means but they're nothing special to me, though I still don't think they deserve the flak they get.

The guitar tone on WotF was a mess though, I may give this a listen if they#ve anaged to sort that disaster

[hansome21]

How are they not nu-metal? Were any of you even alive when Nu-metal was more popular than pop? Do you know any Nu-metal bands? Korn, Deftones, Mudvayne, Slipknot, etc.

FFDP is totally Nu-metal and there is no rule in any music, especially Nu-metal that you can't have guitar solos, it just wasn't popular in the 90s cause Slash made all the other guitarists in the world look like shit, so why bother? ... and jesus christ people why do you care about genre so much?

[ninjagayden777]

X DogBert X wrote:

I heard good things about this band so i checked em' out and i gotta say that these guys aren't what they are hyped up to be. they sound too much like slipknot and their music isn't very interesting or original. this band is about as interesting as a wet carrot.

Wet carrot??? Anyway liked the album. More straight forward than WoTF

[southpaw_tdg]

a band, no matter what label you give it will sound the same without it. stop labeling everything and just listen

[iamthedecieved]

totally not nu metal. if you dont like them its cool but dont drop the N-Bomb on them. i think his voice is unique and smooth. the guitar tone is pretty muddy and the solos arent that intense. like i coulda played them after id been playing for 2 years. however at the same time they are solid and tight and thats all i could ask for. if you dont like them dont comment.

[Creep_C-1]

i dont see how 5fdp is nu metal but ok.. all i know is that zoltan can play guitar well and ivan can sing his ass off. its a great album

[Creep_C-1]

iamthedecieved wrote:

totally not nu metal. if you dont like them its cool but dont drop the N-Bomb on them. i think his voice is unique and smooth. the guitar tone is pretty muddy and the solos arent that intense. like i coulda played them after id been playing for 2 years. however at the same time they are solid and tight and thats all i could ask for. if you dont like them dont comment.

i wanna see u play some solos

[iH8CarAccidents]

I was skeptical listening to this band at first, but I figured I'd give it a shot. Sounds a lot like Slipknot. Not too bad overall though. I mean yeah, it's pretty generic, but at least it's not the Jonas Brothers.
Solid guitar work. Punishing drums. Aggressive vocals.
It's worth a listen.

Checked.

Don't like this band. The Bleeding was cool the first time I heard it, and then it got really annoying.

[Rocker396]

i love how everyone takes the writer of this reviews genre choices offensively. who gives a f*ck if they are nu-metal or not.

[GuitarShredder+]

They Fucking Rock

[Alive@myfuneral]

i love how everyone takes the writer of this reviews genre choices offensively. who gives a f*ck if they are nu-metal or not.

agreed

this album isn't nearly as good as way of the fist but its still a solid album that most FFDP fans will enjoy

[King afed]

Sometimes I feel like I'm the only nu metal fan on ultimate guitar

[rafd02]

theyre not nu-metal, theyre more groove metal, but who cares about stupid sub-genres either way theyre awesome

[The Frayed Ends]

I made up a subgerne for this band, it's called douche metal. Because every poser "thrasher" douchebag I know loves the shit out of this band and it sickens me.

[ibanez91065]

schangatang wrote:

lol.
its not nu metal... its groove metal.
wait..
its not groove metal. its alternative metal
wait!
its actually post thrash groove alternative metal.
wait!
its actually a broom

what the hell?
dude, its chair metal, get your head in the game

[styxfan226]

This album kicks ass, i don't care what the other people say. Everything Ivan has put out (FFDP, Motograter, Ghost Machine) has been amazing.

[F8iscruel]

i need to get this album and now i feel bad, i created the 5FDP thread in the hardcore forums

[Balmazer]

Pretty sure that they're metalcore.

[BIGD2]

bassthunder wrote:

And if you’re a math teacher in New York City and the choppy snarl of the socially-charged “No One Gets Left Behind” or the sensitivity of the ballad “Far From Home” gets you by the jugular, we’ll that’s completely fine.

Proofread much? Also, not everyone in the "heartland" is a trucker or a stripper. We're not ALL rednecks out here.

[da.benson8r]

ibanez91065 wrote:

schangatang wrote:

lol.
its not nu metal... its groove metal.
wait..
its not groove metal. its alternative metal
wait!
its actually post thrash groove alternative metal.
wait!
its actually a broom

what the hell?
dude, its chair metal, get your head in the game

hahaha, very true... FFDP is far better than most of the old nu-metal bands, i hate korn and slipknot fell into the fail zone, static x is good though

[guitaraddict333]

i dont give a damn what genre there labeled under. All I know is I ****in love this band. I can relate to almost every one of there songs, and they make me wanna headbang then beat the **** out of somebody in a mosh pit.

[Dakkstar]

schangatang wrote:

lol.
its not nu metal... its groove metal.
wait..
its not groove metal. its alternative metal
wait!
its actually post thrash groove alternative metal.
wait!
its actually a broom

I love lamp

[jimmeru87]

This band is Metal period! They kick ass!

[brandon2784]

ill give them pop metal.

[zachum1116]

i thought this was a review of the current album, not a debate on the genre of music. anyway, if you have listened to their first album you will realize that the members of this band are actually talented musicians and songwriters. this album however is clearly not as good as the last. the heavy stuff has no feeling, the lyrics make me laugh, and the clean vocals sound like crying. this album does not even hint at the fact that they might know how to write songs, which they clearly do as realized by listening to the first one.

[transplants182]

not a great band by any means, but I think they're decent plus it's impossible not to wanna get in a fight after listening to them

Checked.

[haz_uk]

nothing new - sounds farty and compressed. the riffs are boring and the production is ugly.

[St.Angarrrrrr]

yeah true nu metal is sucky....just like the noriegen black metal woops spelled it wrong but you know what im sayin lol

[Selig_Free]

Great scott! I have to go get this.

[BassistFreak]

Sanitarium91 wrote:
That is unfortunately true.Indeed. Man this band sucks.

If they suck, how do they have 2 albums?
They don't suck, you just don't prefer them.
Instead of just saying a band sucks plain out of nowhere you can give your reasons such as "I don't think they are very musically talented, they could be better in _____"

Hrrm...

[BassistFreak]

Sanitarium91 wrote:
That is unfortunately true.Indeed. Man this band sucks.

If they suck, how do they have 2 albums?
They don't suck, you just don't prefer them.
Instead of just saying a band sucks plain out of nowhere you can give your reasons such as "I don't think they are very musically talented, they could be better in _____"

Hrrm...

[BassistFreak]

Woooops i'm sorry i did not mean to double post, please delete one above. I must have clicked "post a comment!" to many times when my computer was being slow.

[LD_Luke D]

this was the first CD in a very long time to leave me completely speechless

[a drummer]

The Frayed Ends wrote:

I made up a subgerne for this band, it's called douche metal. Because every poser "thrasher" douchebag I know loves the shit out of this band and it sickens me.

dude, you just won the award for being the biggest douch for that comment. Like seriously people. Are we all still that immature that we judge the sound of a band cause some random faggot we don't even know likes them? The human race is half retarded...

[eastern_riffs]

how the hell is 5fdp nu-metal??

[zachum1116]

i don't understand why only about 5 percent of the comments on here are actually comments about the review or educated comments on the album in general. can someone explain this to me?

[Shirate]

I don't get why we have to classify the type of Metal. It looks Metal, it sounds Metal, IT'S FUCKING METAL! Jesus, I bet half the people commenting here have no idea what the difference between groove-, thrash-, nu-, ,-core, power-, epic-, or any pther type of ****ing metal is. It's music, it's crunchy, got some screamin vocals, wailing solos, it's metal.

Btw, it's an awesome album, I heard "No One Gets Left Behind" on the radio and jizzed my pants, and went straight to get it.

[Legionator]

King afed wrote:

Sometimes I feel like I'm the only nu metal fan on ultimate guitar

I love Nu-Metal as well bro.

[Kwonnie]

Five Finger Death Punch is definitely Groove Metal above all. The vocals are the only thing truly nu-metal (Ivan Moody was once in a nu-metal band). And it's pretty clear they've started listening to some melodic death metal since Stranger Than Fiction. That song's their best from the first album IMO.

[zachum1116]

the problem with this classification stuff is, when people want to write music they don't say "hey lets be a nu-metal band". they just write what they want to write and don't care what guidelines they follow or break and don't care about the classification of genre. its not like albums come with a sticker on the front that says " the content you will find in this package is strictly metalcore and will abide by all specifications without straying from the boundaries so that you, the fans, will not complain about it on some obscure forum at 8pm on a tuesday night." besides genres don't even exist, no one officially sets the rules.

[pharm30]

who cares what type of music they play? Going to see them live on Saturday!

[zachum1116]

by the way, thats what i meant^, it doesn't matter what they play.

[JustAddBeer]

I saw them at Mayhem Tour 2 years ago, and i have to say I don't understand why so many people hate them. They were really good live, they got the crowd really involved, and their cd stuff is good too.

Their vocals are great, guitar has some pretty sick riffs but nothing all too flashy. Drumming is tight, some great playing in the cd, don't hear much of the bass but seems decent.

[AnEvilWalrus]

Their lyrics are PATHETIC.
PATHETIC. Worst I've ever read. Grow some balls, Moody.
The Way of the Fist was a far better album.

[dark_rider92]

mcfreaki wrote:

I'm going to buck the trend here by saying that the first time I heard one of their songs, my balls were thorougly stomped by their awsomeness.

good man. join the increasingly small crowd of us "we're gonna be smart and say intelligent, witty, non-flaming statements and stand by them" type.
props...

[Axis Of Evil]

Screw what everyone else says. I think these guys are amazing. Sure, they aren't all technical and such, but what's it matter? If you like it, you like it. And WHY do people who don't like them have to come here and post JUST to slam them? It's stupid. Stop. I don't go to your Megadeth threads to slander Dave Mustaine for his pre-pubescent 12 year old girl voice.

[webbtje]

zachum1116 wrote:

the problem with this classification stuff is, when people want to write music they don't say "hey lets be a nu-metal band". they just write what they want to write and don't care what guidelines they follow or break and don't care about the classification of genre. its not like albums come with a sticker on the front that says " the content you will find in this package is strictly metalcore and will abide by all specifications without straying from the boundaries so that you, the fans, will not complain about it on some obscure forum at 8pm on a tuesday night." besides genres don't even exist, no one officially sets the rules.

Oh, Jesus.

Of course genres don't exist. They're just a way of telling music apart, mate.

[GREENWARRI0R]

I don't understand why people like this band. just sounds like another below average, cookie cutter metal band to me.

[zachum1116]

i don't understand why people who don't like a band waste their time commenting on it in the first place, only to write something negative.

[POWERMETAL!]

GREENWARRI0R wrote:

I don't understand why people like this band. just sounds like another below average, cookie cutter metal band to me.

thats what i thought at first, but theres some talent in there, this cds got an instrumental and a SICK cover of Bad Company.. lol yea. much better then the original!

GREAT CD, for ANY fan of METAL! and i'm a picky ****in metal fan! so get past the 'radio hits' and listen to the very good MUSICIANSHIP in this album, and for the love of God stop calling it nu-metal!!! its very clearly Heavy Metal!

[mr. ...]

"Nu metal isn’t a dead genre."

bummer

[metalb0y]

TERRIBLE SHYTE.

[Cianyx]

Man, they used to have catchy, aggressive riffs and now they've done what all nu-metal bands do, go stale after their first album (Except for Korn, LIP was still good but it went downhill from there).

[bdof]

I like this band, but seriously, my is this release getting more attention then Shadows Fall's new album Retribution? It's rediculous

[southpaw_tdg]

love the album

look you can label it whatever you want. that won't change the way they sound. metal by any other name would melt your face just the same

[NIN_junkie]

I don't understand how people can hate 5FDP. Or give War Is The Answer a 7.3?! Honestly, this CD is excellent. Amazing guitars, intense drums and Ivan's singing is just spot on. Best album I've heard in a long time. Way Of The Fist was perfect, War Is The Answer just tops it off.

[GSbassist]

okay. i love this band. im listening to them right now. but listen. no one gives a flying **** if you think they're nu-metal or alternative metal. and for god's sake, stop saying that dumb joke how it's "chair metal". these guys produce some very good pulse-pounding music. it's the kinda metal that gets your adrenaline pumping, your head banging, and your body playing the air-drums. im a huge fan of this group. and yes, i'll agree, i like this album much better than 'Way of the Fist'. this album is much more original, showing their creative and also lighter side. but at the same time it has heavy tones and catchy, more original choruses. and if you don't like this album and you said it's nu-metal and still posted those stupid comments 1) you're a douche. 2) you don't aren't a true metal fan at all. this album is a must-have.

[eyeamyvalorie]

I think I like this album for now. I think it's very organized, if not predictable: drums, roaring, harmony, guitar solo, next song. The Bad Company cover is pretty okay. It's very Five Finger Death Punch. It's cool to hear a different version of the song, but I haven't put it on repeat like I do the original. Canto is my favorite, and probably because I'd rather not hear Moody's voice all the time. On War Is the Answer I thought he was trying to flex his rapping skills for a minute there. The album is very neat. Metal with a bow on top. Now if you'll excuse me I must go listen to The Fray.

[Cafas]

I bet half the people commenting here have no idea what the difference between groove-, thrash-, nu-, ,-core, power-, epic-, or any pther type of ****ing metal is. It's music, it's crunchy, got some screamin vocals, wailing solos, it's metal.

If you can't immediately tell the difference between doom metal, power metal, and black metal right away, you're not only deaf, you're also retarded. They're clearly distinct branches of metal.

[rapprocka1017]

This album is sick, u haters have no ears

[totsie14]

I actually really, REALLY like 5FDP, which is inasnely odd considering that I'm the biggest AC/DC fan out there. I've always been in to more of the stuff from the mid 70' and the 80's. I can't say how or why, but this is probably one of the best newer bands I've heard in a long time, right next to Airbourne.

[.6.bullets.]

Fuck the haters on here, Five Finger Death Punch is a damn good rock band.
Enough said.

schangatang wrote:

lol.
its not nu metal... its groove metal.
wait..
its not groove metal. its alternative metal
wait!
its actually post thrash groove alternative metal.
wait!
its actually a broom

and that. was ****ing brilliant.

[REPTAR13]

this band rulz and this album was my first of theirs and i absolutely loved it i was on a strict 5fdp music diet for a few weeks and i still love it although i've been able to slip in other music now. I totally stand for this band and album and i WILL be at their show.

[Koshman32]

I love this band. It's pump up music for me. Fun riffs to play along to.

[JacksonplayerXD]

this album rocks...i wish someone would do a tab for canto 34 that songs sick

[daniel22324487]

ok. simply put everyone that commented about the genre has it all wrong. i agree with the fact that the genres are neccessary; but highly disagree with the fact that this band- or any other for that matter- can be put into one of the metal 'sub-genres'. You can't put a band into a genre when they are not trying to follow the rules of that genre, and are in fact just attempting (and in this case succeeding)to make a well diversified album. This album is well put together, has amazing sound, and an aggresiveness that the other bands trying to stick to a specific genre wish they could own.