A potter's field is usually where the homeless with no family relation are buried. 12 Stones says that that is where they are as a band. "We may have sold over 300,000 units, but at the end of the day, there are still a lot of people who haven't heard of 12 Stones." Morbid, but well put. After tours with the likes of Creed and Three Doors Down, as well as vocalist Paul McCoy's famous appearance on Evanescence's "Bring Me to Life," it still seems like 12 Stones is a little-known band.

But they do have a following, a faithful one, at that. Their Creed-ish grunge style of rock on their 2002 self-titled debut may not have been the freshest sound; but teens related to the pained, yet optimistic lyrics. Now, two years later, the highly anticipated, by those who know who they are, sophomore effort Potter's Field has hit stores across the nation. Does it improve on their debut?

As said above, their grunge rock style is not laced in originality - far from it. Creed comparisons are almost required. 12 Stones does some to kill that image on Potter's Field, mainly by adding more of a melodic edge instead of the raw, though tame, edge of their debut. If anything, this album suffers from being somewhat dull. Their debut had enough stand out tracks to keep it from that label, but Potter's Field, unfortunately, does not. This is not to say that there is nothing to like about this disc. It just lacks any amount of excitement. Everything seems scripted from track to track.

The lyrics continue the 12 Stones tradition of presenting the darkness before the dawn, but usually not forgetting the light up ahead. God's name is never used, but He is most definitely referred to on more than one occasion.

Musically and lyrically, nothing much has changed. Perhaps a bit more melodic, as said, but that's about it. And though it's a tad more unique, I can't help but miss the sound of their debut. Perhaps a step forward, perhaps a step backward, depending on how you look at it, Potter's Field is sure to draw mixed reactions from fans abroad.

- Review date: 07/27/04, written by Josh Taylor