I'm going to take this album track by track, mostly because I've fallen in love with the entire thing, for different reasons.

1 - Wake: A great little intro that touches on musical themes of the album.

2 - Given Up: Given the slower and softer songs on this album, I'm glad that LP opened this album with a screamer. I appreciate both, but I've found myself deeply attracted to those songs that give my rage a safe place to live. And I'd love to hear this song live. [Video]

3 - Leave Out All the Rest: There's that great little effect at the beginning that gives an echo-y and ethereal quality to this song, which makes perfect sense, since lyrically it starts out with a dream.

4 - Bleed It Out: Although I liked the other singles released for this album, it was this track that made me download and burn it. Loud, angry and it seems to channel that bloodlust we feel sometimes. A perfect speeding on the highway song. [Video]

5 - Shadow of the Day: At first, I was lukewarm on this track, but then I just realized that I was tired of hearing it on the radio, but within the album, it fits right where it is. I actually like it and feel like I understand it better in context. [Video]

6 - What I've Done: I only recently watched Transformers and heard this song in the movie. Instant love. I love the sample (or drum) that sounds like a ticking clock, I love this song lyrically and delivery-wise. Around this time I started to notice a sense of religious undertones in the album, at least musically. [Video]

7 - Hands Held High: I shared this with a friend who writes his own beats and rhymes, knowing he would love it. He went sick when he heard it. There is definitely a sense of being in a church, somewhat, during this song, which is, of course, balanced by the rap pats. Politically, this song completely works for me.

8 - No More Sorrow: Another screamer, perfectly placed in the album order.

9 - Valentine's Day: This song hasn't completely grabbed me, but I like it well enough. Oddly, I listened to this album around V Day, so this one seemed almost commercially placed, although I'm sure it wasn't. Coincidences are weird.

10 - In Between: "My pride and my promise." This song peculiarly touches me. It reminds me of a man I've never met. This is when I think a long night with the songwriter would reveal something interesting.

11 - In Pieces: It was the guitar riff in the bridge that completely charmed me. It's a fantastic song, but that riff...ooohh. Seriously. I love how it builds. In fact, LP is really good at building up to some great music. But it's the riff first and lyrics later--that's how I was seduced.

12 - The Little Things Give You Away: Of all the songs, this one I feel the strangest about. Lyrically good, but politically--I'm mildly in disagreement. Probably my least favorite of the bunch, but I still really love the sound. Maybe I wish it was about something else. Yet I respect an artist's right to express an opinion, even if I don't wholly agree with it.

In my version of the album, I have a couple live tracks. I guess I got the Circuit City edition or something. Either way, they're good, but nothing spectacular. I'd prefer to see these guys live, although I imagine the little kids running around would annoy me. I would have loved to see LP when they were little-known and bratty suburban kids weren't allowed out at night.

Yeah, I like it. I only wish it was longer.