Despite flashes of excellence on their debut album, Fear And Love, We Shot the Moon, (driven by former Waking Ashland lead singer Jonathan Jones) lacked a consistent combination of solid music and lyrics necessary to create an epic project. However after a label shift, We Shot The Moon's sophomore release, A Silver Lining, is poised to bring them back into the spotlight as a dynamic artist.

Although the central template for We Shot The Moon's music hasn't changed (the band still remains a piano-fueled indie act), a couple of spins of A Silver Lining reveals that their music is better than ever. On Fear And Love, the music usually lacked an extra element as there was frequently an extra guitar needed or background vocals required to get the maximum enjoyment out of a single song. Contrast that with A Silver Lining and the first song "Miracle," and you have Fear And Love's basic piano-fused, rock song plus good vocals to go along with an improved cutting-edge beat.

The album then trots along with a good song selection filled with pop rock tunes topped off by the flawless "Woke Her Up" and the title track which mixes an intense chorus with some outstanding sole piano moments. However, there are moments on even the good tracks "Amy" and "In Good Time" where the music is just a little overproduced. But despite a couple of tracks which bust, like "Candles" and the humorous but brief "The Bright Side," the album largely remains fluid.

Those who thought that Fear And Love's lyrics were just a bit vague will sadly not find much security in A Silver Lining's lyrics either. The album's main focus is on relationships, but, as the title confirms, there is a hopeful shell that surrounds the album ("The Bright Side," "Amarillo," and the title track all contain positive sentiments). God never really factors in, but on "Woke Her Up," the singer, in search of answers, says ‘Are you near/are you still going to save me/from the fear/are you still going to save me.' Unfortunately the song hints at a couple living together without a marital context.

In a few ways, A Silver Lining reminds me of Relient K's Forget And Not Slow Down. Both albums are largely not riff-driven, and both encounter failed relationships more than once. However when Jones's sings ‘the hardest thing to admit that I love you/Sweet Amy/ don't let fear take me from you' along with other uninspired romance tunes, it leaves Relient K's lamenting just a little more authentic. Factor in We Shot the Moon's unclear (at best) spiritual references and the band's lyrics become the album's Achilles Heel. But, on the bright side, We Shot The Moon has made several steps in the right direction musically and, undoubtedly, hold the tools to create a great album. And that, in fact, is the silver lining.

- Review date: 10/25/09, written by Nathaniel Schexnayder of Jesusfreakhideout.com