One of the most highly anticipated albums of 2022 arrived this month, I speak of the debut album by FLOOD. Entitled \u201cPolarized\u201d it features 3 prior members from Tourniquet. Yes that Tourniquet, as if there were another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Guy Ritter returns with a fantastic vocal performance throughout. Not so much the falsetto vocal of the first 2 Tourniquet albums but a smoky swirly gravely vocal that adds his own notch in the Flood sound. Erik Mendez also returns adding his own screaming guitar parts and songwriting skills to this fine release. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
However one of the most amazing returns is Gary Lenaire (guitarist, songwriter and vocalist) who for many years had turned his back on his faith. That part of the story is for another time (However the lyrics to the title track Polarized seem to be quite autobiographical). This album however shows musically why he was so important to the classic albums of the 90s. The driving riffs, scorching guitar solos, not to mention his own vocal prowess. It\u2019s simply powerful in this reviewers opinion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As if this wasn\u2019t enough, on drums is David Husvik the powerhouse from Norwegian metal giants Extol. An accomplished musician with several different metal bands and jazz projects. On bass guitar is Anna Sentina an accomplished musician and quite honestly an AMAZING bass player, heck watch her video covering Rush\u2019s YYZ, wow!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Flood delivers an eleven track metal assault which is took me a couple of spins to penetrate. It is a release that requires more than 2-3 spins to truly appreciate and penetrate. Musically, Polarized is heavy, modern, intricate and complex. There are many nuances to every track that if you just crank it to ten you will miss. However if you just do that the record is quite enjoyable, but if you can put it on use some headphones (my DT 770pro\u2019s work wonderfully) and listen, not just hear, you can pierce the veil and get under the hood so to speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Album opener \u201cDesign\u201d is Lenaire\u2019s new declaration of faith. He and Guy provide the vocals here and Gary declares \u201c I CAN SEE THE DESIGN!!\u201d from there it\u2019s off to the races with high octane riffages, tremendous drumming and scorching bass playing. However there are a lot of dynamics on this album, tracks like \u201cDarfur\u201d written by Lenaire and Mendez has an amazing guitar solo; actually several of them, at times atmospherically it reminds of a metallized Pink Floyd. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Technical metal is on display here without it being inaccessible. That is a rare ability for a band to create art which can be heard by all without sacrificing artistic integrity. There are three instrumentals on this release \u201cThe Four Seasons,\u201d \u201cIn Remission,\u201d and \u201cThe Order of Melchizedek.\u201d Each of these take you on a journey that is quite intriguing, emotional and fulfilling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBiotech Babylon,\u201d \u201cWar in the Sky\u201d both deliver screaming metal goodness with the added bonus of being well constructed and arranged, with a strong melodic bent. That can be said of all the tracks on this album. \u201cMy Last Ride\u201d is a mid tempo, haunting and almost disturbing bit of metal. As with all the lyrics on this album, well thought out and intelligent. Not random musings and hackneyed cliche\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lyrically the band tackles Intelligent Design (\u201cDesign\u201d), Genocide (\u201cDarfur\u201d), War (\u201cStop the Bleeding\u201d), Personal Spiritual Journey (\u201cPolarized\u201d), Animal rights (\u201cThe Last Ride\u201d), Biomedical human modification (\u201cBiotech Babylon\u201d). All thought through and well written which are quite deserving of your attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Polarized by Flood is fantastic record, clearly an early contender for album of the year in 2022. Give yourself the opportunity to delve into this release and allow it\u2019s ominous metal goodness to engulf you while reminding you of why we are here. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
An album that shouldn\u2019t be missed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
One of the most highly anticipated albums of 2022 arrived this month, I speak of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":7442,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1020],"tags":[1520,1497,1519,191,1518,161,909],"class_list":["post-7441","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-review","tag-david-husvik","tag-echo-hollow","tag-erik-mendez","tag-extol-d31","tag-flood","tag-gary-lenaire","tag-victor-macias"],"yoast_head":"\n