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"Crazier than I ever was… I'm bloodied up I beat my skull in… Comin' home in a body bag… And I'm ready to die for rock n' roll…" Whoa, did I miss something here? Quoting the opening to the second verse of "M-80," I'm floored by the intensity, not to mention the moral aptitude. I'm new to these guys. Probably like many of the anti-MTV generation, I only knew of what I'd heard in brief channel flipping or inadvertent bouts with the radio dial, and I'll be damned, these guys got some chops to go with their teen-angst and sharp cuts. 

And love 'em or hate 'em, you gotta give 'em points for name selection, I mean, Papa Roach just works. Jacoby Shaddix, formerly of "Coby" fame, is right out of some mid-seventies TV cop series… brilliant. And the guy's real name too. I ain't much for the whole Rap/Rock spillover, which I've found too often lacking in creativity let alone identity. These guys have been releasing records since '95 but only recently struck gold… shit, triple platinum(!) with their "Infest" release in 2000, quickly rising in status from Limp-like also ran's to Rap/Metal breakthroughs. 

"Lovehatetragedy" is not a continuation from there. While it would've been easy to capitalize on the still climbing success story, they've gone another route, exploring further into the musical capacity, only previously hinted at, of an original Rock band, wailing out the riffs and riding a broader range of melody to both the playing and singing. 

Casting aside previous doubt, this could be a debut record in another time to open the door for a new legion of fans to walk through-elbows flying and knee's jerking of course. Furthermore, the tunes have an accessibility factor that's often unheard of in today's "heavy" music. Rather than rewrite the same chunky riff and apply the obligatory scream, slap on the quirky title and release it to the general public, this one's album driven and I'll go on record to say it probably won't come close to reaching sales figures of their previous but will be appreciated for its complexity and completeness long after they've taken their last stage dive. 

"M-80" bursts out of the gate for a two minute Punk revival that dispels any notion of complacency; ""Life Is A Bullet" is an edgy mid-flown live for the moment follow up; "Walking Through Barbed Wire" opens heavily before relenting into a mournful chorus following the loss of a loved one; "Decompression Period" enters a mellowing phase consistent with thought collecting; "Born With Nothing, Die With Everything," ties in an Emo-riff with a me against the world view and lyric of the year: "Fed up, tired, sick and twisted/One-man army, I'm enlisted." Every tune tells a story, and Horton's guitar playing is artful, agile, and sheer madness as the next level jump in style builds momentum from first note to last. 

They've toured with popular acts like Korn, Eminem, Limp Bizkit, copped plenty o' fans from 'em, rode the wave, and moved away, blowing away preconception in the process. There is of course some trace of their past on the single "She Loves Me Not," an overall solid tune, featuring the obligatory rap for the bridge, but ultimately yielding to the crashing guitars and weighty grind of the music which surprisingly, doesn't waver at the end. The closing title track and two bonus follow-ups prove every bit as powerful as the ten preceding. "Lovehatetragedy's" got the advantage of following a million selling success building Papa Roach into a highly marketable commodity, and affording them the opportunity to recreate and reacquaint with their roots, making for a heavy Rock dynamo that'll definitely open some eyes