Fall 2011 is quite a ballad-y season in the hard rock and metal realm. First, Five Finger Death Punch issue their contemplative song 'Remember Everything' as their latest single and now their tourmates All That Remains are walking the same path by releasing the deep, dark and daunting 'The Waiting One' to radio.

'The Waiting One' is  -- you guessed it -- a ballad, thanks to its composition, complete with an acoustic opening and entirely clean vocals, both of which combine to draw you in. But those elements also translate to "brace for impact." While the song is a ballad, there are still moments of sonic escalation and there are plenty of metal tenets.

All That Remains, one of the most enduring bands of the New England metal renaissance that dominated the previous decade, manage to administer a pummeling, all the while remaining radio friendly. The song may be slow, but it is by no means soft. It's just more tame than we expect from the band. There are enough solos and ferocious, battering ram drumming to keep the metal ante upped.

Lyrically, the band isn't afraid to show off a more sensitive side, either, with vocalist Phil Labonte singing, "How long I've waited, waited for you / To come back to hold me / What should I do
When I feel so lonely / How could you do this to me / Betrayed by my closest friend / How could you do this to me / I won't let you hurt me again." The sentiments prove that everybody hurts, no matter your gender or your genre.

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Listen to All That Remains, 'The Waiting One'

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