Music and Lyrics
Believe witnessed the band shift away from the waning nu metal scene and place more emphases on lead guitar and melodic complexity. This musical progression would follow through on future Disturbed albums where guitar solos would become commonplace. While The Sickness focused on heavy compositions, Disturbed's sophomore effort varies greater in its range of heaviness and melody, closing with a somber, acoustic ballad entitled "Darkness." Singer David Draiman also wished to demonstrate greater vocal dimension than the intense style he was previously associated with. Nevertheless, he described the content of the album as "pure and unadulterated in every sense of the word 'metal'."
As noted by Draiman, Believe contains overt religious and spiritual themes. These were inspired by various experiences such as the September 11 attacks and the recent death of Draiman's Orthodox Jewish grandfather:
- "All the songs on the record revolve around the theme of belief in oneself and in humanity's potential. . . And the right-wing reactions of religious leaders of the world to the events of 9/11 had a lot to do with the original impetus of where this record came from. It angered me beyond any way I could possibly explain. The whole album's about questioning your beliefs to determine what you really can believe in."
Lyrically, the album deals with various other topics as well. "Remember" delves into the cutthroat nature of the music industry as well as Draiman's resistance to indulgent partying; "Awaken" deals with America's never-ending obsession with vacuous "wallpaper music"; the tracks "Bound" and "Intoxication" focus on Draiman's inability to have a meaningful romantic relationship. In an interview, he noted, "I've had various experiences with women over the past two-and-a-half years that have made me have several chips on my shoulder - not in an angry way necessarily, but almost in a pleading way. I'm at a point in my life where I've had my heart torn apart so many times that there's just not much left to it."
In keeping with the lyrical themes, the album cover features symbols of major religions, including the Jewish Star of David, the Islamic crescent, the Wiccan pentacle, and the Christian cross.
Read more about this topic: Believe (Disturbed album)
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