During an era when most
heavy metal
bands wallowed in their own misery, singing about pain and sadness,
P.O.D.
offered a more optimistic alternative. The band had been releasing music since the late '90s, but it was this album rather than its commercially overlooked predecessor,
The Fundamental Elements of Southtown
(1998), that reached out to countless listeners. Quite simply, you can't deny the emotion
funnels into its songs. The sentiment feels genuine, as if this band truly cares about its listeners, one of the key reasons why this album shook the
metal
world in 2002. And, as most listeners will no doubt agree, it did so for the better. The
world needed an album like
Satellite
in 2002, just like it needed a band like
to challenge longtime
heavyweights like
Tool
and
Korn
for supremacy. The spiritual, emotional band writes songs about promise and hope -- songs that inspire you to celebrate life, not despise it. It's not just the singing of vocalist
Sonny
either, though his soaring voice has much to do with it. Rather, it's the band as a whole that gives the songs on
so much affective power. These four guys obviously love making music together, and that passion comes across in every song. Guitarist
Marco
, bassist
Traa
, and drummer
Wuv
fuse a variety of influences --
,
hip-hop
dub
Rage Against the Machine
-- and create music that stands on its own, apart from the many other
nu-metal
bands of the time. In particular,
"Alive"
"Youth of the Nation"
stand out as rallying calls for
fans looking for music about living, not dying. ~ Jason Birchmeier