Greyest of Blue Skies

• Artist: Finger Eleven
• Rating:
• Release Date: July 25, 2000
• Type: Lyrics are included with the album
• Genre: Rock

Review

With their second release on Wind-Up Records, Finger Eleven attempts to establish itself as legitimate rock stars in an already saturated market. Like fellow Canadians Our Lady Peace, Finger Eleven relied on a lone single from its debut album to hit it big with alternative radio outlets and springboard its career. And like Our Lady Peace's "Starseed," "Quicksand" did just that, bringing the band's name into households throughout North America. In fact, comparisons between the two Ontario-based bands go beyond simply location and career path. Their musical styles are also remarkably similar, built upon simple electric guitar work and their lead singers' extremely flexible voices. The Greyest of Blue Skies marks a bit of an evolution from the sound established on Finger Eleven's first album, Tip. The Greyest of Blue Skies is quite pensive and features more prominent guitars than its predecessor, but it is also pleasantly harmonic at times. The songs have a polished feel to them, regularly breaking into catchy, but far from cheesy, refrains that will have all but the most stoic listeners singing along. The band is able to pull off fast and heavy pieces like "Suffocate" (first released on the Scream 3 soundtrack) as well as deeper, more ponderous songs such as "Sick of It All" without appearing hypocritical in the slightest. In the end, the album is an enjoyable listen that stays away from the fluff and filler that often plague alternative rock bands. For fans of Canadian rock, Finger Eleven is the next logical step from "that other band." ~ David Reamer, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
First Time (Lyrics)	Arnold Lanni, Sean Anderson, Scott Anderson, James Black, Rick Jackett	Finger Eleven	(4:26)
Drag You Down	Sean Anderson, Scott Anderson, Rick Jackett, James Black, Arnold Lanni	Finger Eleven	(3:21)
My Carousel (Lyrics)	Scott Anderson, James Black, Rick Jackett, Arnold Lanni, Sean Anderson	Finger Eleven	(3:43)
Sick of It All (Lyrics)	Scott Anderson, Rick Jackett, Arnold Lanni, Sean Anderson, James Black	Finger Eleven	(3:18)
For the Ocean (Lyrics)	Scott Anderson, Rick Jackett, Arnold Lanni, Sean Anderson, James Black	Finger Eleven	(2:56)
Broken Words (Lyrics)	Sean Anderson, James Black, Rick Jackett, Scott Anderson, Arnold Lanni	Finger Eleven	(3:27)
Suffocate (Lyrics)	Sean Anderson, Arnold Lanni, James Black, Rick Jackett, Scott Anderson	Finger Eleven	(3:44)
Bones + Joints (Lyrics)	Arnold Lanni, Sean Anderson, Rick Jackett, Scott Anderson, James Black	Finger Eleven	(3:47)
Famous (Lyrics)	James Black, Arnold Lanni, Rick Jackett, Scott Anderson, Sean Anderson	Finger Eleven	(4:08)
Walking in My Shoes (Lyrics)	Martin L. Gore	Finger Eleven	(3:52)
Stay and Drown (Lyrics)	James Black, Rick Jackett, Sean Anderson, Scott Anderson, Arnold Lanni	Finger Eleven	(4:23)

Credits

Arnold Lanni (Engineer), Rick Jackett (Guitar), Arnold Lanni (Producer), Arnold Lanni (Mixing), Ted Jensen (Mastering), James Black (Concept), Sean Anderson (Bass), James Black (Guitar), James Black (Art Direction), Chapman Baehler (Photography), Rich Beddoe (Drums)