Review Summary: Quite possibly the next big thing in the Christian rock scene. Highly recommended if you're into Linkin Park, Breaking Benjamin, Chevelle or Flyleaf.
A young band fresh out of Nashville, Red has accomplished a great deal in such a short time. Their debut album 'End Of Silence' sold 200,000 copies and was nominated for the "Best Rock or Rap Gospel Album" at the 49th Grammy Awards. They're also in a very firm position to spearhead the Christian Rock scene along with Thousand Foot Krutch and Skillet.
For such a new and young band, the band shows a great deal of maturity most bands usually only gain after half a decade or so. Lead single
Breathe Into Me is a stunning song, from the eerie intro to the hard hitting riffs and Michael Barnes amazing vocals. "Breathe your life into me; I still need you; I'm falling; Falling breathe into me" he pleads with so much emotion which sent a chill down my nerves.
There is also good use of sampling, a piano and a feel of atmosphere such as during the intros of
Already Over and
Hide and this adds a lot of depth to their sound. The piano and acoustic driven power ballad
Pieces is their most ambitious song as it builds up to an exciting climax with string instruments in the background. Barnes heart felt lyrics are quite touching on this particular song.
Break Me Down is another excellent song with some very melodic guitars. Barnes is again excellent here alternating between singing, screaming and chanting "Break me down, I want to fight".
Gave It All Away and
Lost are the hardest songs on the album with crunching riffs, the latter in particular having a spectacular outro with Barnes screaming "Let Go" over some more string instrumentals. Unfortunately the song isn't so great and it feels like it's being dragged on at times.
The vocals are the obvious highlight of this album. Barnes alternates well between his pleading (which has a striking resemblance to Lacey Mosley from Flyleaf) voice, singing and Chester Bennington-ish screams. The guitars are pretty solid throughout this album, a solo or two would have been a nice touch still. The drums and bass are nothing special, all you get are simple beats and the occasional cool fill however you barely take note of it with so much going on at once. Rob Graves did an excellent job producing an album; without the string instruments and sampling a lot of the songs wouldn't have been as epic as they are.
Recommended Tracks:
Pieces
Breathe Into Me
Break Me Down
Already Over
Pros:
- Excellent vocals
- Strong lyrics
- Good balance and mix of ballads and rockers
- String Instruments and sampling add a nice touch
- Crunchy, hard hitting guitars
- Pieces
Cons:
- Drums and bass left behind in dust
- Christian lyrics may not appeal to some people
- Overproduction may mean they might not be so great live
I give it a solid
4/5 overall.
This Message Edited On 02.02.08
