Flaw Album: “Through the Eyes”

I remember, the first time I heard Flaw almost two years ago right before Christmas of 03. I was quite sick with the flu and laying down watching music choice Metal (channel 410) My jaw dropped to the floor. The song playing was "Only The Strong" which is still one of my favorite songs of all time. Which was quite suprising being that by that time I was mostly into melodic death metal/ black metal and thrash metal ( Cradle of Filth, Emperor, In Flames, At The Gates,Dark Tranquility and Opeth for a few examples). However, there was just something about the lyrics and vocals and such that I loved. I didn't actually buy the cd until the Summer of 04. When I did though, you better believe I listened to it day and night. Chris' singing just seems powerful and incredible, one of the best vocalist I have heard in a while. Also, he doesn't go down to the level of having lame new age metal lyrics like " I'll break your face if you look at my girlfriend." or corny things such as that. They're well thought out.

Only The Strong - 1000/10 As I said before, this is one of my favorite songs of all time. The lyrics really hit home for me and i feel a true attachment to this one. Best song here.

Payback - 9/10 Starts out with a nice bassline then the drums and distorted guitars kick in. One of the heavier tracks here.

My Letter - 10/10 Great ballad type song, the vocals in here are just powerful. Can't get enough.

Get Up Again - 10/10 One of the best songs here, the lyrics seem to have a real reflective feel to them.

Whole - 10/10 A great metal track, I love the lyrics in them. Just the way Chris sings them, you can feel the emotion.

Amendment - 9/10 Starts out slow but as the song goes on it begins to get heavier. Goes inbetween near screams and singing.

Scheme - 8/10 ALOT of distorted guitars here, the drumming is the best on the album here.

What I Have to do - 10/10 has a real " My Letter" feel to it, which is great. the vocals in the chorus are just incredible.

Inner Strength - 9/10 starts out with a single guitar riff and grows into a beast with the help of Chris' vocals.

Best I am - 10/10 From the first secodns of the guitar melodies I knew this was going to be a great ballad.

Out of Whack - 8.5/10 I know, lame song title. I thought it might be a lame angst song, I guessed wrong.

Reliance - 9/10 While most of the focus on this album is on the vocals, the guitar/drum section takes over here.

One More Time - 9/10 Good closing song, starts out with some low drum work and some awesome singing. Ending on a strong note.

So, to end this. I don't care what metal you like. This one deserves a spot in your collection, Enjoy.

This cd is excellent. In a genre of music where almost every CD sounds the same, Flaw blew everybody else away with this one. Easily one of the best CD's of the decade so far.

The CD starts off with "Only The Strong", a number with a heavy riff that showcases Chris Volz's excellent voice. Volz has one of the most beautiful singing voices I've ever heard, and combines it with some screaming at times. The second track and first single "Payback" is an example of this, as Volz's screaming during the chorus is awesome, and adds a lot of energy to the track. Then we get to the albums BEST song, and one of the best songs I've ever heard. "My Letter". It's amazing, driven by emotionally charged lyrics, and stayed stuck in my head for months after the first time I heard it. Easily the best song Flaw has done, and obviously the best on the album. "Whole" is another emotional song lyrically, and is pretty good, though not their best. "Amendment" is my 2nd favorite on here, it's got extremely heavy riffs and verses, followed by a beautiful bridge which ends with a screamed obscenity ('We're the recipients of hate, motherf***er'). It gave me chills the first time I heard it, its awesome. Also of note, "Amendment" is over 5 minutes in length. Not many new metal bands pull off songs over 4 minutes, or write songs this well. "Scheme" is another great heavy song. "Best I Am" is a slower ballad, very well written. "Reliance" is a very pissed-off song that rocks hard, and "One More Time" is a great closer with some good lyrics. But it's not the end. There's the hidden track version of "Only The Strong" which is just Chris Volz singing the song with a piano in the background. It's beautiful, and contrasts the heavy version that the CD starts with perfectly. So overall, this is an amazing CD, one of the best ever in my opinion. I'd recommend it to anybody and everybody (and if you're still not interested in buying the album, at least check out "My Letter" or "Amendment"). 10/10 for sure.

While a lot of people hear the first few seconds of this album and immediately group Flaw in with all the other worthless "nu-metal" junk, this album, while very cleanly produced, is a unique and generally pleasing listening experience. A lot of people dismiss this band so quickly as being "just another angry band," but really very few songs on this album are overtly aggressive. Most songs involve fairly complicated melodies and feature a very pleasant-sounding lead singer - a lot of people think he's trying to be Maynard from Tool, but I just don't hear it...though there are several bands out there blatantly ripping them off. Anyway, this is one of the most enjoyable albums I've bought recnetly. I buy very little "nu-metal" - only that in which I can find some unique quality that separates it from the other trash out there. Bands like Flaw, Lifer, and Ill Nino, to me anyway, exemplify what is good about "nu-metal"...something that really boils down to opinion, but if you're just going to give bands liks Flaw one star, what do you give the bands that have no talent, can't sing, and can't write lyrics? If 3 stars is average, Flaw easily rises above that distinction.

Flaw's debut release, "Through The Eyes", is easily one of my favorite albums of all time. After hearing the song, "Payback", I was hooked. Once you pop the CD in the player you'll discover such songs as, "Scheme", "Whole", "Only The Strong", and "Ammendment". If you are a fan of Hard Rock, you are doing an injustice to yourself everyday that you dont buy this CD.

One night, I was closing up the store I work in (a music store) and found a used copy of this CD sitting in the "Trade-Ins" box. (Now, I'm not sure why someone would get rid of this.) Anyway, I'd never heard of them, so I just threw it in the CD player to have something to listen to while I closed. I was blown away, I liked it instantly. Once I heard the song "Payback", I knew I was gonna take the album home with me that night. I like a lot of bands who have the heavy/melodic sound, but these guys take it to the extreme. One minute, they're jamming out metal on their thunderous guitars while the singer screams hard and passionate...and then they'll slip into something very melodic and beautiful. The singer sounds like the singer of Disturbed (when he sings) and the singer of Deftones (when he screams). This was one of my favorite CDs of it's year, and I can't wait for a second album. If you need to hear samples, check out "Payback", "My Letter", "Whole" and "Scheme". ALL of the songs are amazing though. I promise that if you like Deftones, Disturbed, Cold or Staind's heavier stuff, you WILL in fact love this album!