It won't take long for listeners of Spoken's sixth studio album to be
reminded of how hard and fast the band can rock.

The three songs that open the album, "History Erased," "Close Your
Eyes" and "Not Soon Forgotten," start things off with nine minutes of
blazing fast guitar riffs and loud and quick-rising vocals, all
bounded by a full-sounding rhythm section.

After two albums for Tooth and Nail where the band explored more
anthemic avenues, the quintet found itself re-examining its hard rock
and metal roots on its third record for the label. The resulting
album is an 11-song sonic attack that knows when to slow down the pace
and when to pounce back like a slap to the face.

"We didn't intentionally go for a heavier sound," guitarist Jef
Cunnigham said. "We just wrote what came to mind and I think it turned
into some of our best material."

Late last year the band's hectic touring schedule slowed enough for
them to start working on the record, though they had a few
geographical obstacles to overcome before starting.

With members spread across four states, each created a secret Myspace
for a non-existent band where they would post song ideas for the
others to listen to.

Singer Matt Baird would download these parts to his iPod, where he
began to craft the lyrics for the record. His finished work centers on
topics like redemption and restoration, and reaches its pinnacle on
the album's tenth track, "When Hope is All You Have," which began as a
phrase he used during his father's funeral just before recording
began.

"There are songs about healing and hope and about moving on after
we've made mistakes," Baird said. "I felt some pressure in writing,
hoping my parts would turn out as good as the music. But I think it
all came out better than I could've imagined."

After their internet-aided pre-production, the band decided to set up
shop in a one-room cabin in the Smokey Mountains of Tennessee for over
a month to mold those song ideas into the core of the album. After
three weeks of work, Baird joined the band for the final two weeks to
add his lyrics to the fray.

With songs in hand the band then headed to Lakeside Studios in
Knoxville for a month-long session with producer Travis Wyrick
(P.O.D., Disciple), who also produced 2005's "Last Chance to Breathe,"
a record that helped the band expand its fanbase as it ventured into
poppier leanings.

"I'm blown away by the finished record," Cunnigham said. "We wrote
these songs to please ourselves, to write songs that we wanted to play
live and we ended up with a few that were heavier and harder than
anything on the last two records."

Wyrick and the band have created a sound less reliant on overdubs and
layering and more focused on bringing the band's live show to mind
with a more sparse sound that still rocks as hard as ever. Maybe more
so.

"We wanted to experiment with heavier songs and think further ahead in
the lifespan of the band," Baird said. "And with these heavier songs
it really feels like a step toward the future and a reflection of the
past."