Dark New Day burst onto the scene seemingly from out of nowhere with mainstream rock radio appeal and immediate success. Dive a little deeper and see that it is made up of members from B- and C-level rock bands Stereomud, Double Drive, Sevendust and a few guns for hire.

They all came together and wrote an album of easily devoured rock that major labels (like Warner Bros, who put out this disc) love. Every song is formulaic with angst and hooks, angst and hooks, and more hooks. Label people love this because they can put the album out there, blindfold themselves and pick a random track and get the airplay they crave on all of the mainstream stations in major markets. Rock like this is the reason why major market rock radio is a dying breed and more and more people are converting to satellite radio.

There is nothing technically wrong with Twelve Year Silence. It is well-produced modern rock in the vein of a Puddle of Mudd, Nickelback and Saliva. You can’t help but drum or hum along with the songs. The rhythms have been ingrained into the heads of radio listeners for years.

Simply said, Dark New Day’s Twelve Year Silence is disposable corporate hard rock that is sure to sell plenty of copies in Walmarts across America. There is nothing groundbreaking, but nothing was intended to do such. This is music to make a quick buck for the band and the label, and is sure to do just that.