Following in Staind's footsteps, Nickelback make the personal public and vent a history of frustration and resentment to melodic hard rock. Silver Side Up starts with "Never Again", an angry tirade against domestic violence that sheds light on the issue without too much sap or sentiment. The catchy "How You Remind Me" and "Woke Up This Morning" tell of rotting relationships, while other tracks touch on damaged hope and lost dreams. The post-grunge, alt-metal combo backing these songs packs as strong a punch as the lyrical material, going hard with lots of hooks. The additional slide guitar on "Hangnail" and sludgy, alt-metal riffs on "Hollywood", "Money Bought" and "Where Do I Hide" add a little meat to the alt-rock bones on Silver Side Up, elevating Nickelback above the heap of copycat rockers clogging the airwaves. --Jennifer Maerz
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