Every now and again and band comes along and sets the bar for themselves, some manage to vault effortlessly over their limitations while others miss and stick with a generic formula (see every band on rise records). But in this case UK natives Enter Shikari are not the latter. They offer a very strange blend which cannot be categorized but they pull off this new genre very well, and can be potential pioneers for it. Euro-dance mixed with post hardcore attributes, and vicious lyrics that hit home. Still riding on the success of the last record Common Dreads they manage to top themselves again with A Flash Flood of Colors
The album beings slow but begins with an arena rock anthem entitled “System” Roughton Reynolds just talking accompanied with club style rhythm. The album picks up at the 4 track “Search Party” which is a perfect sing along track, anyone can get into it. Easily. Reynolds vocals are in top form throughout the record, even though this is my first record of them, this song made me it easier to get into them. The record gets better around the latter half of it starting and “Gandhi Mate, Gandhi” beginning with a rant of how the government is fucking us over. The album has clear message behind it with anti-government, one can hear it through the lyrics of almost most of the songs. “Warm Smiles Do not Make You Welcome” and “Party of Thieves” both feed and complement each other’s energy, they both show that ES aren’t just about loud straight forward fuck you with dubstep laced underneath the mess, but also have a technical and softer side, giving the band and listener time to breath. Both songs work in a way that even though they’re the softest, they still are still more noticeable then the rest. The last track I found very interesting “Constellations”, the first time I heard it was on train. Reynolds talks about how he’s at a train station and he’s waiting for two trains, one is always on time and heading towards disaster, while the other is sustainability, never on time and going in the opposite direction . Further on he shouts that we need to be the change in order to see the change, it ends on a high hopeful note, with the entire band pulling in their weight. The dubstep influence is evident throughout with many aspects of the early sound along with many DJ’s including Doctor P, Nero and Pendulum.
AFFoC is sound of progression for Enter Shikari, everything on this album for the instruments to the voices blends and comes out with a beautiful mess. Reynolds is painting a picture through his mouth that can welcome old or new fans like me. Many bands that have a unique tone to them don’t normally do well due to bold black line that differs them from sounding to generic or just sounding like garbage, but in this Enter Shikari manage to execute their creativity in a way that can captivate the listener regardless of their musical preferences. None the less A Flash Flood of Colors is making 2012 look like a good year both for the band and fans and even the industry. Even though the worlds going to end, ES won’t go down without a fight. Pick up A Flash Flood of Colors January 17.
