A Sneak Peek...
This is the third studio album by "Cold". It was released on May 13, 2003 through Geffen Records.
The album is Cold's most commercially successful, debuting at number three on the Billboard album charts, with over 100,000 copies sold in its first week. This is also the last album with guitarists Terry Balsamo and Kelly Hayes.
"Year of the Spider" is significantly more commercial than its dark predecessor, "13 Ways to Bleed on Stage". It features a variety of guitar styles, violin, viola, and cello, and digital effects as well as a number of power ballads, while still dwelling on topics like drug abuse and relationships, the deaths of grunge icons ("The Day Seattle Died"), and blatant criticism ("Kill the Music Industry"). "Cure My Tragedy" also deals with the struggle with cancer Scooter Ward's sister was having during the album's recording.
(Photo: Fandom.com)
One of the highlight strengths of the band is Scooter Ward's talent as a vocalist. Sure, he sounds sometimes like Maynard James Keenan, and often seems like the emotional twin of Aaron Lewis. But none of this diminishes the fact that, in the bombastic, one-dimensional world of nu-metal, "Cold"'s regeneration as a melodic, vocal-driven metal band helps it stand out, and will likely help it survive when the industry inevitably pushes away from the post-grunge table.
Listen to the album on: Spotify, Apple Music.
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