Almost a decade after the band broke up due to lead singer Scott Stapp’s drug addiction, they have reconciled with a sober Stapp who has said goodbye to his long hair and dangerous lifestyle to release "Full Circle."

     From the first track, "Overcome," it’s clear that Stapp will no longer hide his demons, as he claims that "everything we are and used to be is buried and gone." The new album is certainly his "turn to speak," and he does so by bringing the band back to its roots with hard dominant vocals, and backed with ample guitar riffs, yet carrying a different, refreshing sound.

     Next, "Bread of Shame" features another quick-picked intro, but lackluster vocals. The chorus drags out and sounds begged. As for the meaning of the song, it’s anyone’s guess. The album takes a stumble here, reminiscent of Stapp’s horrid solo album, "The Great Divide."

     Luckily, though, "A Thousand Faces" comes in and saves the album. The song starts with another slow-picked intro, but with much more poignant vocals. The voice that hides behind no instrument is back, and just as pleasing to the ear. Tremonti has another signature solo and even pulls off backing vocals in the chorus. As the lyrics go, though, "You wear a thousand faces, tell me which is you" – is Creed really back?"

     Disappointingly, "Suddenly" follows with an intro strikingly similar to "Bread of Shame." Again the song parallels the lyrics and lacks strength. This off and on pattern of smash hit and boredom does not look too promising.

     "Rain" tries to answer the debate with a subdued guitar, and a return of the Stapp vocals as he looks for help to protect him from the rain. Although, this is a quality track, the theme of making a "comeback" is growing stale.

     The theme doesn’t change in "Away," which begs a former lover to not give up, yet sounds like Stapp is singing to the listeners. The song uses a combination of acoustic/electric guitar with softer vocals. We get that he is "not the man [he] used to be," and are getting tired of it.

     Thankfully, "Fear" returns back to Creed’s hard roots, and is ready to leave the past behind and make a change. With a shaky chorus, it’s a start, but not much of one.

     Then "On My Sleeve" continues the change with the help of a twangy guitar, powerful lyrics stating that "it only hurts to breathe," and interesting vocals. Yes, the theme and Christian influence are still the same, but this song is one of the few to work so far, even though it does depart from the traditional Creed sound.

     This sound continues in "Full Circle," which even gets a bit bluesy. The riffing is innovative and intriguing, but gets dragged down by the vocals and lyrics. It’s another step back before "Time" can again reclaim the lyrics and vocals with its soft guitar. Once again, Creed is more like their old selves when they take a couple of chances by creating a somewhat different sound.

     Not surprisingly, "Good Fight" follows the harder track the same way as its predecessors and even disgraces Tremonti with its solo. Then to close out the album, as you may have guessed, "The Song You Sing" is a lighter, inspirational track with an amazing solo that picks up as the songs takes its course.

     This album could be described in one word as predictable, but not in the good way Creed used to be with their signature sound that you could depend on. It’s a wonder why a future hall-of-fame guitarist like Tremonti would go back to the band he couldn’t wait to get away from when he’d seen so much success with Alter Bridge, and even his own signature guitar model this past summer. Mark Tremonti playing in Creed is like listening to Beethoven with your fingers in your ears.

     I guess he needed something to do while lead vocalist of Alter Bridge Miles Kennedy tours as front man of Led Zeppelin, since a singing career would not be in his best interest. In the mean time, there are good singles on the album, but on the whole, it’s not great.

Grade: C+