The debut album from this young, energetic set of newcomers out of Sacramento should open the eyes of rock fans everywhere, or bore them to tears. Joining alongside the mainstream rock monsters, Die Trying sets its sight on becoming the new king of the mainstream rock airwaves.

Die Trying never tries to infuse complicated lyrics and riffs throughout their music. This band caters to the fickle fans of simple power chord rock music. The band sticks to a very generic formula that's been done before by many bands such as Papa Roach and Reach 454. Almost looking like a plea for acceptance for DT, Jacoby Shaddix of Papa Roach even makes a guest appearance on "Conquer the World". The problem with this is that these "clone" bands never really make an image for themselves, since they borrow heavily from everyone else's. A band that truly puts enough effort, talent, and image into their music doesn't need a popular guest artist to help them sell records. In Die Trying's case, it may be the only thing that will actually help them.

The album in its entirety seems uninspired and quickly thrown together. Incredibly thoughtful song titles like "Fuck You" reflect upon this. Each song perfectly captures the quintessential mediocrity and predictability of the entire pop-punk rock genre. At the very least, the production is very solid, and much more refreshing to hear than the recent garbage Metallica has decided to use. However simplistic everything seems, songs such as "Dirty, Dirty", "Runaway", "Oxygen's Gone" and "Never Good Enough" are still somewhat catchy and enjoyable. These songs drive the album, and will keep it from fading into obscurity.

Just like that girl you knew back in High School that did everyone she came in contact with, when something (like the mainstream rock formula) is used over and over again it isn't as appealing as something fresh and new. Die Trying tries very hard to be like everyone else instead of focusing on their material and musical direction itself, and in the process has made an album that will come and go in a relatively quick period of time. When Die Trying truly finds themselves, and shows who they really are in their music, then they just might be something to look forward to in the future