Mental instability was a pivotal focal point on an album which truly blazed a trail for a band of hurt warriors, musicians downtrodden by the state of the world. Senses Fail programmed a record that birthed many talking points, and the themes of the record were razor-sharp, combining love and hate.  

The music was always arresting. Pushing the band’s abilities, letting them freely express themselves. By lashing the world with their rage, the act would go onto becoming a go-to band for the disenfranchised and the people totally banished by the elite.  

Life Is Not A Waiting Room scorched the land of emo. The lyrics were evocative, on board with what was going on. Lead singer Buddy Neilson portrayed through his writings, mental struggle, and why his empire was slowly cascading.  

Neilson was losing the plot, his heart was buckling, his dreams were melting into addiction, but the music stuck to these themes seamlessly, drawing from dark memories. This record was the band’s rock opera too, a story-driven masterclass in song-structure, an ode to emo and hurt.  

The record had its hits. From Lungs Like Gallows which held up the rock theme tremendously. The lyrics were dark, gloomy, forward-thinking and drenched in melancholy. Garden State went along the same lines, as its bashful chorus woke the ghosts. That guitar line lit up the room.  

Family Tradition was a standout, a bruising track. Neilson wanted to be the best, and this song tells tales of self-deprecation. His mind-set was struck with pain, and he needed a place to rest from the impeding demons.  

All For Cody was a blast of rock and emo. Neilson sang again, rasping like a mad man, orchestrating the song like a puppet show. It was one of the most emotional songs on the album.  

Life Is Not A Waiting Room blew open new avenues for Senses Fail. The record portrayed a story of pain and mental instability, but it seamlessly drew a new crowd and gave the band something precious to hold onto.

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