A rock band faces two choices in life — to make money performing radio rock or to venture into the less lucrative unknown. Trapt has obviously chosen to tread the beaten path. Maybe they veer off here and there, but they never lose sight of the road.

Trapt's latest effort, Someone In Control, correspondingly plays it safe. Hoping to follow up their breakout single "Headstrong" with another smash, the band has served up an album of hard rock tinged with the faintest hint of emo.

While the first single off the new album, "Stand Up," isn't quite as catchy as "Headstrong," other songs on the album may yet become rock radio staples. Since its 2002 self-titled debut, the band has locked into a satisfying but formulaic hard rock style ideal for FM airwaves. There isn't much room for variation, but the band is good at what it does.

It is obvious Trapt borrows heavily from their modern-rock peers. The California band is reminiscent of a watered-down 3 Doors Down (though 3 Doors Down has become less and less exciting since The Better Life). Most songs contrast airy, effects-laden verse sections with down-and-dirty distorted refrains. Trapt have become true masters, or at least good imitators, of the light-and-dark approach Led Zeppelin pioneered so long ago.

For a hard rock fan, listening to Someone In Control is like eating candy for lunch; it tastes good but lacks substance. Almost anyone could enjoy humming along to the verses and singing along with the choruses, but the "music high" is bound to crash.

Trapt sound like career musicians. They put in their time practicing, produce an album, get some radio play and go on tour. Nothing within the process stands out. It almost sounds like Trapt approach their music like any Joe Schmoe would approach his steady nine-to-five job.

That's not to say Somone In Control doesn't have its moments. The refrain on "Disconnected (Out of Touch)" plays like a hard rock mantra. The lyrics — "Too out of touch, out of touch to touch you" — fit in perfectly with the balls-out riff the band launches into.

The refrain of "Victim" ("I want your eyes, I want your eyes on me") and the short vocal harmony part on "Waiting" are also especially catchy.

That said, the album does have its share of bad moments, mainly when the band shies away from the moderately fast riff rock they do best. The softer approach on "Lost Realist" turns the song into a toothless mockery of an up-tempo ballad. On songs like "Use Me To Use You," the band tries too hard to come up with a catchy refrain and ends up falling flat on its face.

Another problem is that for most of the album, the vocals fail to stand out.

Every truly great hard rock band bases its sound on a powerful singer. Tool has the haunting echo of Maynard Keenan. System of A Down has the frighteningly spastic insanity of Serj Tankian. Incubus has the weightless androgyny of Brandon Boyd.

Unfortunately, Trapt only has Chris Brown, whose main vocal talent is the ability to stay in tune. He can put a little edge on his voice, but the vocals remain indistinct. While the songs are solid, there's nothing to push them from pleasant to unforgettable.

Accordingly, the instrumentalists provide most of the album's spice. Guitarist Simon Ormandy engages the listener with shimmering textures on songs like "Bleed Like Me" and "Repeat Offender." Bassist Peter Charell adds tasty one-measure bass solos to several songs. The drums are tight, but mostly just provide a reliable backbeat. The band is definitely ready for radio play, but not the pantheon of great rock bands.

According to the group's biography on its official website, "Trapt is a young band that likes it hard and heavy … but also defies all classification."

In reality, Trapt doesn't defy classification, but actually fits neatly into the category of "radio friendly hard rock band." However much emphasis Trapt may put on their "eclectic" sound, at the end of the day, they're just another standard band with a standard sound.

People looking to do nothing more than turn up their headphones will be pumped up by Someone In Control. For anyone looking for something in the way of musical revelation or innovation, they've come to the wrong place.

Grade: C