THE GREAT DIVIDE are a Hard Rock band formed in Rome in 2010. As far as I can see from a quick online search, this is their first full release and is a mix of American and European Hard Rock to try for a unique sound.

The album starts with "Rise" and already I'd say this sounds more like a heavier Indie Rock band that may put a few metal purists off but it's definitely good if you stick with it. It's almost a bit Pop Punk in places. A good opener with a bit of a Punk edge to it and nice little guitar solo.

After a similar track in "So Wrong", we have "Love Sick Dog" which appears to be one of the more popular tracks on offer and it's not hard to see why. There's a kickass guitar riff and a catchy chorus sure to get stuck in your head. In terms of the production, I do think the vocals could be a bit louder but it does have a nice underground feel to it. Next track is "Bone" which was the first single released for the album and it's easy to see why as it's easily my favorite track here with a nice quiet spoken verse with a chunky riff in the background and yet another catchy as hell chorus. The guitars are a highlight and this track is a great example of that.

Despite the title of the next track being "Killing Time", it's the most ballady track on the album to shake things up a bit before bringing back some of the heaviness during the last minute. Another highlight.

There's a couple of tracks on here that really remind me of an earlier GREEN DAY with "Divided" and "Bad Habits" being the biggest examples but it does give them a more unique sound to other tracks as the band knows how to keep things interesting. "Grinder" and "Sleeper" close the album in a great way with the former being a bit more of a Grungier track with the best guitar solo on the album and ends up being one of the heavier tracks. The last track is much softer and ends things on a lovely melodic note.

Overall I had a great time with this album as the band were able to keep things fresh for its 40 minute runtime and there wasn't a bad song in sight. Sure it wasn't the heaviest album but it doesn't need to be as there's already plenty of albums out there to satiate that thirst. This was just a straight up fun rock album worthy of a few listens.