Best known at the time for the wide-eyed stylings of hit singles "Dreams" and "Linger," the Cranberries reached a fork in the road for album number three. Instead of doling out more radio-friendly dream pop ditties, the quartet took cues from No Need to Argue's "Zombie'' and "Ridiculous Thoughts," charging headlong into darkness on their angsty third set, 1996's To the Faithful Departed. Misunderstood by some at the time for its stark tonal shift, this aptly titled effort could be considered the most well-executed and thoughtful album in their catalog: the point where the band snapped into reality and had a lot to say about what they found. Hardened by these realizations, those "dreams" of old are long gone, replaced by war, death, and the dark side of fame. Appropriately, much of the album is emotionally weighty -- with loss looming around every corner -- and the band's delivery matches that heft in volume and scope. From the opening wall of crashing guitars on "Hollywood," it's apparent that this is not the same old Cranberries: Dolores O'Riordan's inimitable wail is at its most pained, while Mike and Noel Hogan and Fergal Lawler amplify their muscular attack like never before. Expanding to cinematic proportions, the curtains are pulled back and it's almost like they are seeing the world clearly for the first time. As O'Riordan laments, "It's not so glamorous at all." A frantic guitar squall and urgent drums smash through the punked-up "Salvation" as O'Riordan delivers a desperate warning cry about addiction. Later, elastic bass squiggles on the hard-charging "Forever Yellow Skies," where she growls and howls her way to a breathless close. On the harrowing "I Just Shot John Lennon," she reflects on the dangers of being in the spotlight through the lens of one of music's most infamous deaths, driving the point home with the shocking gunshots that bring the song to its end. Kurt Cobain (who had died just years prior to this album's original release) and John F. Kennedy are later invoked on "I'm Still Remembering," as O'Riordan seeks solace in her marriage in the face of an increasingly scary world, closing the circle with the carnival-esque "Will You Remember?" When the energy isn't at a boiling point, the tears flow as the funeral bells toll on the mournful lament "Electric Blue," while ceremonial horns swell on the crushing "Warchild." Bittersweet remembrance washes over the sad waltz "When You're Gone," the mandolin-backed tribute to O'Riordan's late grandfather "Joe," and the eponymous ode to the band's industry father figure, Denny Cordell. The timely invasion of Sarajevo is referenced (one of multiple times) on the dramatic "Bosnia," a time capsule of a song whose lessons most of the world has forgotten all these years later. A pair of rare light moments come with "Free to Decide," an empowerment anthem that the band wrote to flip-off naysayers and critics ("There's a war in Russia and Sarajevo too," so why is anyone concerned with what the band is up to?) and the sweet ode to innocence and young love, "The Rebels," a sweeping dose of nostalgic respite that's punctuated by a chorus featuring one of O'Riordan's best vocal runs. Showcasing such a wide spectrum of emotions and experiences, the Cranberries took a brave step in a direction that forever altered their sound and approach, seizing their moment and maturing from contemplative indie dreamers into stadium-sized rockers. For such a dour album, To the Faithful Departed ends up being their most electric, life-affirming album to date, a reminder to hold close those things that are precious and to value what you have before it's too late. ~ Neil Z. Yeung