Grey Britain

Grey Britain
Studio album by Gallows
Released 2 May 2009
Recorded 2008
Genre Hardcore punk, metalcore[1]
Length 52:11
Label Warner Bros.
Producer Garth Richardson
Gallows chronology
Gallows / November Coming Fire
(2007)		 Grey Britain
(2009)		 Death Is Birth
(2011)
Singles from Grey Britain
  1. "The Vulture (Acts I & II)"
    Released: 27 April 2009

Grey Britain is the second album by English hardcore punk band Gallows, released 2 May 2009 through Warner Bros. Records. It is their last album to feature lead singer Frank Carter, and their first with guitarist Steph Carter writing and recording.

Background information

A second album by Gallows was first hinted by vocalist Frank Carter during an interview with NME, where he stated that because Gallows was "a hobby I get paid for," the band would likely be defunct by 2010. However, he confirmed that during this period, the band would record up to two additional albums. He later told Kerrang! that the claims regarding the band's imminent break-up were untrue.

In an interview with Kerrang!, it was revealed that Gallows' sophomore effort would feature guest appearances by Biffy Clyro's Simon Neil, and various members of Rolo Tomassi and Cancer Bats. In an interview at Sonisphere 2009, the brother of Frank Carter and vocalist of British hardcore band Blackhole, Richard Carter confirmed that he appeared on the track 'Black Eyes'. Guitarist Laurent Barnard confessed that the nearly finished album had left him "stoked."

In the March edition of Total Guitar, guitarists Steph Carter and Laurent Barnard noted that most of the keyboards had been stripped back and that the guitars were reminiscent of Black Sabbath's 1970s efforts. They also noted that the main goal when writing Grey Britain was to make it "the heaviest album they had ever heard."

In an interview with Rock Sound, Carter announced that Grey Britain would be 49 minutes of aggressive music and that signing a contract with a major label had not influenced the band to record a "poppy" or more "commercial" album.[2]

On 13 January 2009 Carter revealed on BBC Radio 1 that the album would be released in early May 2009, after which the band will resume touring. On the following day, the band announced their second studio album would be titled Grey Britain, and that it has been produced by Garth Richardson. Carter recently explained the premise of the album to Kerrang!, saying, "Britain is fucked. Grey Britain is all about what's going on socially, politically and economically in the UK and how it affects us."[3]

On 1 March 2009 it was announced that the first single from the album would be "The Vulture (Acts I & II)," to be released on 27 April.[4] The music video for "The Vulture (Act II)" had its world première on 23 March 2009.[5]

Carter told Kerrang! that he wrote "Misery" when he was at his "lowest ebb." [6]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AbsolutePunk.net(83%) link
Allmusic[1]
Clash(9/10) link
Drowned in Sound(8/10) link
Guardian.co.uk link
Kerrang!
Decibel [7]
Mojo [8]
Metal Hammer(8/10) -Issue 191-
NMENME
Rocklouder! link
Rock Sound(8/10)link

Grey Britain received almost universal acclaim from critics, scoring Album of the Month in Rock Sound magazine and 8/10 on Drowned in Sound, who commented: "the music rockets from intentionally rudimentary knuckle-whiteners to ambitious-of-design affairs that reconfigure one’s opinions on a band previously seen as a straight-up hardcore act".[9] Ben Myers of Mojo commented "Not since the Pistols and The Specials has a pissed off provincial band so clearly meant it" and ClashMusic called the record "as daunting as blow-drying your face in the evil ghost-gas that Indiana Jones unleashes from The Lost Ark".[10] Stereokill described the album as a "dark and powerful, hardcore punk masterpiece."[11]

The Telegraph praised the group for its lack of compromise, echoing Stereokill in calling Grey Britain "a masterpiece of rock brutalism". It also noted the progression of Gallows' sound, combining traditional hardcore sound with newer styles, comparing the "grotesquely churning riffage" with that used by nu metal bands such as Slipknot. It summed up the album as "the most exciting album in many moons."

The album debuted at number 20 in the UK album chart on 10 May 2009.[12]

Kerrang! listed Grey Britain as the best album of 2009.

Track listing

All tracks written by Gallows. 

No. Title Length
1. "The Riverbank"   2:30
2. "London Is the Reason"   3:11
3. "Leeches"   3:46
4. "Black Eyes (featuring Richard Carter)"   2:51
5. "I Dread the Night"   3:39
6. "Death Voices"   3:55
7. "The Vulture (Acts I & II)"   6:02
8. "The Riverbed"   3:57
9. "The Great Forgiver"   2:14
10. "Graves (featuring Simon Neil)"   2:42
11. "Queensberry Rules"   4:16
12. "Misery"   5:09
13. "Crucifucks"   7:59

References

  1. 1 2 Lymangrover, Jason. "Gallows – Great Britain". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 May 2015. ...[Gallows] rethought their plans ... [for] Grey Britain, and ultimately came to a decision to revamp their sound with a metal edge. There's the same screaming angst and relentless speed that was celebrated in their first outing, but now Carter's shrieks are backed by double kick drums and explosive speed metal guitar riffs that have more in common with Slayer and early Metallica than Black Flag or the Exploited. Shifting into metalcore territory is a tricky decision, since a lot of their initial appeal was due to the fact that they were making their own personal stamp on revitalizing punk — a genre that's becoming increasingly saturated with commercialism.
  2. ↑ "Gallows: Classic Concepts". (January 2009). Rock Sound, p.65
  3. ↑ "Kerrang! Exclusive! Gallows new album tracklisting". .kerrang.com. 2009-02-10. Retrieved 2011-11-14.
  4. ↑ "News: Gallows Announce First Single". idiomag. 2009-03-02. Retrieved 2009-03-04.
  5. ↑ "Gallows Releases New Video". Noise Press. Retrieved 2009-03-23
  6. ↑ "Misery". Songfacts.com. Retrieved 2009-04-29.
  7. ↑ Yates, Catherine. "Anarchy in the UK: Grey Britain review". Decibel magazine. No. 59. p. 91.
  8. ↑ Meyers, Ben Meyers (June 2009). "Grey Britain review". Mojo magazine. No. 187. p. 98.
  9. ↑ Savage, Milton (2009-05-05). "Gallows - Grey Britain / Releases / Releases // Drowned In Sound". Drownedinsound.com. Retrieved 2011-11-14.
  10. ↑ "Gallows - Grey Britain | Clash Music Latest Album Review". Clashmusic.com. 2009-04-29. Retrieved 2011-11-14.
  11. ↑ Miller, Campbell. "Gallows – "Grey Britain"". stereokill.net. Retrieved 2011-11-14.
  12. ↑ "Radio 1 - Chart - The Official UK Top 40 Albums Chart". BBC. 2007-02-24. Retrieved 2011-11-14.
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