Dear Diary

"Dear Diary" is the third album released by Christian punk rockers, FM Static, a side project of two members of the Christian hard rock band, Thousand Foot Krutch. FM Static is led by

Trevor McNevan (lead singer and guitar) and Steve Augustine (drums).

While on tour, as Thousand Foot Krutch, lead singer Trevor McNevan began writing for the new record. McNevan came up with the idea to make their latest album, a concept album.

"This is the first concept album I've worked on, and it was a ton of fun. It felt theatrical from the start. I imagined this high school boy, new in town, writing through life's big questions about faith and fitting in as he grows up towards college," says McNevan.

"Dear Diary" is based around a high school boy who moves to a new town. Each song represents a different diary entry of the boy as he is experiencing love, anger, sadness, and faith in this new town. In between each song, in the liner notes, a short back-story is also told about the teenager.

The first two songs on the album introduce us to an unnamed boy who writes diary entries about his feelings living in a new town. "Boy Moves To A New Town With An Optimistic Outlook" is about the boy looking ahead to what could possibly be a new beginning in his life. The second song, "The Unavoidable Battle Of Feeling On The Outside," is about the boy feeling like an outsider in high school and deciding to try and stick it out.

The album then takes a turn when the main character meets the girl living across the street. "Boy Meets Girl (And Vice Versa)" is a fun song about the boy falling in love with his next door neighbor.

A few songs later, the album takes a drastic turn. The girl's father commits suicide, and the girl and the mother decide to move away. The next few songs are emotional diary entries about feeling helpess and alone in troubled times. The boy is crying out to God to help him and his neighbors get through these hard times.

The album does not end on a sad note though. The album comes full circle when the boy graduates from high school and decides to go to college. "The Shinding (Off To College)" is a fun, heartfelt song about the new experiences of being in college.

The music on this album directly parallels with the emotions portrayed in each song. The fun, happy songs have driving guitars and drums. The serious and sad songs are filled with slow melodies and simple piano chords.

Trevor McNevan and Steve Augustine have put together a powerful, emotional, and heartfelt album. The main fans of FM Static, teenagers and college students, will no doubt fully accept and identify with this record.

According to McNevan, this album is a true coming of age story. "What listeners can ultimately expect is a rocking, melodically-charged coming-of-age story that somehow combines the creative vibe of independent films like "Juno" and "Napoleon Dynamite," a dash of "High School Musical" charm, and the altogether rare element of uncensored faith."

Overall, this is truly a groundbreaking album. Never before has a Christian punk rock band put together an album of this scope and magnitude. FM Static takes a simple coming-of-age story and transforms it into a story about love, faith, grief, and God. This album is the first great Christian punk rock album of the year.

Steve Augustine(drums) pictured left and Trevor McNevan (vocals and guitars) pictured right

All Trevor McNevan quotes were taken from FM Static's biography at toothandnail.com.