Enter Shikari – A Flash Flood Of Color
Album Review by Jade Middleditch
When you think of ‘Enter Shikari’ you think of synth & screams but the boys breathe new life into their music with new record ‘A Flash Flood Of Colour’. The long anticipated 3rd Studio album from the Hertfordshire quartet breaks away from previous record ‘Common Dreads’ and explores the themes of Unity throughout the whole world, the state of the economical empire, and fighting against the government.
On first impressions whilst listening, Enter Shikari seem to have grown up a lot in their song writing, they seem to have finally found their foundation sound with this record, a mixture of original lyrics and fast beats as well as experimental sounds. There is something for everyone, whether hard breakdowns are your thing like in “Meltdown’ or softer rhythms ‘Constellations’ will be the song for you! Sssnakepit, Gandhi Mate, Gandhi, and Arguing With Thermometers have already been released from the record, and they are already brewing up a storm.
This is a very important record, it has a real sense of meaning, that we can all take inspiration from and the lyrics are pointing towards a cause that we should all be aware about, as front man Rou Reynolds states ‘We’ll start a world so equal and free, every inch of this Earth is yours, all the land and all the sea’ this is a band trying their hardest change the world, one song at a time, this could be a record that loses them some fans, but also gains new ones who can relate to and care about the message they are sending out.
Definitely worth a listen for any Shikari addicts or fans of the genre. ‘A Flash Flood Of Colour’ is released through Ambush Reality on January 16th, the band are starting their ‘A Flash Flood Of Colour’ tour run, traveling over Australia through February and Europe, through March. If you get a chance to see them, you will not be disappointed!
Track By Track
1. System – A fantastic intro to the album, with a strong metaphorical message, and a violinist style background, with some nostalgia, it sets a high standard.
2. Meltdown – The craziest song on the album with one of the best breakdowns, any avid hard-core fan will love this song.
3. Sssnakepit – Another song about unity, and joining together to fight a bigger cause, however this song doesn’t scream a message in your face like some of the others, it’s a clever song, with subtle hints of what’s to follow.
4. Search Party – This track is about history and how the world has come to the state it is in now, and about finding a way to make the world better, Shikari are really trying with this album to make it memorable, and it will be. By starting slow and ending in true Enter Shikari style, fast and loud.
5. Arguing With Thermometers – An incredibly upbeat and fast paced song to listen to, with a very fun Chorus! This song flows perfectly and fits right in its place on this record, highlighting a point about the use of oil and what will happen in the world when it has; as it inevitably will, run out, perhaps the most important song on the album.
6. Stalemate – The first slow song of the album, very soft, in lyrics and in the guitar in the track, ‘Stalemate’ talks about war and who makes the profit, a strong and solemn song which is beautiful to listen to.
7. Gandhi Mate, Gandhi – This song will get your heart jumping and your fists pumping, led by a powerful speech about a ‘failing economy’ which then turns into a rather silly un-serious song, but still worth a listen.
8. Warm Smiles Do Not Make You Welcome Here – A very hard song to get into, this does not sound like Shikari, but never the less the lyrics make the song stand out as one of the most meaningful tracks on the record, and it picks up the beat at the end for a well-executed ending.
9. Pack Of Thieves – Pack Of Thieves is the most anthemia track on the album; it’s about unity between friends, it’s also sure to be a crowd pleaser. Very upbeat and fun, you can’t help but move to this song.
10. Hello Tyrannosaurus, Meet Tyrannicide – This song is my least favourite of the album. It is worth a listen, but not as good as some of the previous tracks, heavy in some parts and overall a hard song to really get into.
11. Constellations – Best till last! A song most similar to anything from first record ‘Take To The Skies’ with memorable structure might like ‘Adieu’ this acoustic piece is beautiful in every way, smart lyrics, powerful vocals, interesting sounds, this will become a favourite for a lot of listeners.
Overall Rating: 4/5
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2 Comments
this review was awesomeeee
Write more, thats all I have to say. Literally, it seems as though you relied on the video to make your point. You definitely know what youre talking about, why throw away your intelligence on just posting videos to your weblog when you could be giving us something enlightening to read?