Flood Of Red - Leaving Everything Behind (Album Review)

Exploding onto the underground scene a few yeas back, Flood Of Red are a band that have put in the time and have toured their socks off and its felt like forever that we've been waiting for this record; I was not expecting the album that I hear.

When I first heard Flood Of Red there were a fun-loving screamo outfit with big riffs and fearless vocals, but on this debut record they've gone for much more epic and melodic sound which makes quite an ambitious debut. Opening with the prelude 'The Edge Of The World', from the off this is an intense, emotional affair with the softly delivered, fragile vocals set against a backdrop of gentle guitar melodies and reverbed piano. There seems to be quite a few slow burners here, which is what makes it a really hard-hitting, powerful and often heart-breaking piece of work (see 'Losing All Balance In Fells Point' and 'I Will Not Change'). However their are some straight up rock moments such as 'I Am The Speechless', 'The Harmony' and the slighlty pop-tones of 'Paper Lungs'; all of which stand tall with big guitar melodies, massive choruses and strong harmonies. 'Paper Lungs' isn't the only tune that seems to have that pop-quality to it, former single 'A Place Before The End' and the brillaint 'The Heartless And Loving' both have the potential to have commerical success, this is again due to big, single-along choruses and catchy melodies. It must be said that at 14 tracks and 52 minutes long, there is certainly plenty to get your teeth into and with a delayed guitar line and soft to loud dynamics in every song, by the records climax, (The Edge Of The World) you can predict which way the song is going to go. However, every song is delivered with so much passion and engergy and boasts countless moments of sheer beauty that after a few plays, you find your self playing it again and again as the melodies really take over your brain. In conclusion, this is a really stunning record with pristeen production and alot of heart and here's hoping will take these young lads from Scotland into the big league.

Rating: 8.5/10
Download: 'Hope Street', 'Paperlungs' ,'The Heartless And Loving', 'I Am The Speechless' (I know I normally pick three tunes, but there are so many belters here, it was hard to choose)

'Leaving Everything Behind' is available to download for one dollar! This via the bands website and you can also pre-order various bundles with the CD copy, t-shirts and so forth. www.floodofred.co.uk or to check out tourdates and other news please take a gand at: www.myspace.com/floodofred