Lyrically, this is where they drop the ball. The bass on this album, as always on a metal record, is non-existent, and when it does actually pop up it's just following the guitars with nothing ever standing out. His singing on the other hand is actually pretty decent, but like I said, nothing to write home about. Ivan Moody's sceam/shout only stays at one pitch most of the time, while occasionally reaching for a high-pitched scream here and there. They follow almost the same exact pattern through most of the songs (scream/shouted verse, sung choruses) and in that sense make the album a bit repetitive. While I shouldn't say they're bad, the vocals on this album are definitely lackluster.
Some good fills and well-done double-bass add to the songs well, showcased by "Ashes." The drumming is also another high point on the album like everything else, it's nothing amazing, but it's very solid. Lead single "The Bleeding" and "A Place to Die" both have very good intros and solos and are definitely standouts on the album. The guitar playing is very good, with lots of hooks throughout most of the songs and some very tasteful leads and solos. It's nothing amazing or mind-blowing, and it's certainly not anything you haven't heard before, but what they do, they do well. The instrumentation on the album is very solid.
Metal/thrash act Five Finger Death Punch comes out of sunny California and gives us their wishy-washy debut, The Way of the Fist.