American rock band, ”Daughtry,” just released part two to their 2024 EP “SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM” on Friday, Sept 12th, 2025. The seven-song EP was released just shy of a year before “PART ONE” of the album dropped. This release marks the second EP in the American Idol finalists’ discography.
Lead singer Chris Daughtry spoke to Collider about why he chose to split this album into two parts, and told the outlet that splitting the album allowed him to fully delve into his personal struggles and mental health. Expressing to Collider, “Life had forced me to look at things that I had been ignoring or didn’t even realize I was ignoring for years.” He set the tone with the lead single “THE DAY I DIE,” very quickly, which Daughtry said is inspired by “The Day I Tried To Live” by Soundgarden, as it is one of his favorites by the band.
Upon my first few listens, I could immediately tell this was a very emotional and vulnerable album for Daughtry, really delving into his mental health struggles. He allows himself to put all his emotions into lyrics in just about every track on the album. Especially on the last song released right before the album came out, “THE BOTTOM.”
Daughtry once again told Collider that COVID was really a wake-up call for him to finally start making the music he wanted, for him, and not just what he thought the fans wanted. He expressed to Collider that the sound of “SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM” was exactly how he wanted his music to sound from the beginning.
My favorite song from the album was the closing track, “ANTIDOTE,” which was such an emotional piece that immediately resonated with me. I almost cried upon first listen. It’s truly an amazing piece of work that I’m glad Daughtry decided to put on the album and make the choice to be transparent with his fans.
I also think how the album opens is so cool, how “THE SEEDS” is just an intro, and then the seeds are referenced in “DIVIDED.” Tracks being connected and flowing into one another is one of my favorite things an artist can do on a release.
All in all, I think this is an incredibly deep and vulnerable part two that flows extremely well with part one. It’s a perfect step moving towards more music the way Chris Daughtry wants it to sound, and not just what the label and what he thought the fans wanted.
