Floodland

I liked this. 4/5

I don't know how I never listened to this album. It sounds so much like the music I liked around that time - Depeche Mode, the Bahooahs, &tc.

Pretty wild ride and fun to listen to.

Now I need to watch the Lost Boys.

GOTHS

I have this CD... it's been in my pile of "i'll get around to you" for a year...

It was brilliant and I'm a mug for not hearing this until yesterday! :)

Не знаю, все звісно стильно, але якось воно залишилось в тому часі. Мені подібні жанри інколи в настрій заходять, але весь цей готік-рок (тайп о негатів не рахуємо, це окрема штука), естетично мабуть все ж не моє.

Absolutely rips - big gloomy synthy goth rock with great vocals and hooks for days. The sparse piano track (1959) brings it down a bit but when it's full force it's a hell of a mood.

I am familiar with The Sisters of Mercy as one of the most prominent acts in dark culture, even if they don't fully embrace that notion. They started as a full band until members left the band, citing creative differences, leaving the Sisters of Mercy name to frontman Andrew Eldritch and his drum machine, affectionately named "Doktor Avalanche". The only other people Andrew brought in for a new record were bassist Patricia Morrison for backing vocals, and producers Larry Alexander and Jim Steinman, the latter of whom previously worked with the likes of Meat Loaf and Bonnie Tyler. So, with Sisters of Mercy now largely regarded as a solo project for Andrew Eldritch, how did Floodland turn out?

Honestly, this was pretty good. Credit to Eldritch as a songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, because he set out to make this album as sonically catchy as possible despite the limitations in place. The obvious highlights are the Jim Steinman-produced tracks "Dominion / Mother Russia" and "This Corrosion", but I also dug the sinister dirge with the driving electronic drum beat of "Flood I", the prominent bassline of "Lucretia My Reflection", the aching sequencer-driven ballad of "1959", the crisp acoustic guitar strums over the accompanying haze of "Flood II", and the atmospheric wallow that gradually builds on "Driven Like the Snow". Throughout, Andrew was stimulating in his bass-baritone, painting macabre tales with vivid imagery in his lyrics, drawing upon the immersive lure of water to describe lost innocence and collapse, be they of empires or of the group's previous split. There is genuinely intriguing storytelling here.

Sure, I can imagine that people will prefer the more prominent band dynamics on their first record, First and Last and Always. Not to mention, I feel that the fragmented ending of "Never Land" could have been fleshed out more. But overall, I was genuinely pleased with Floodland, proving how resourceful Andrew Eldritch is as a well-rounded musician.

I was ready to come in here and hate, but then This Corrosion hits and all hatred is gone and the vibe is simply immaculate. This is a disgustingly 80’s album in the best way. Terrible album cover too. Favorite songs were Lucretia My Reflection and This Corrosion.

This is really good, but not quite my goth album of choice. Part of the problem is definitely that the Sisters of Mercy sound became archetypal as the 80's and 90's progressed, so to me, this doesn't sound like it has an extremely strong identity, even though I know that this was pretty groundbreaking. The post-punk basis of earlier goth is slowed down, reverb-ed out, and given a dancier coat of paint. But it kind of sits in a weird place to me: to put it as efficiently as I can, it's not as dark as The Cure's albums from before it, and it isn't as catchy as The Cure's albums from after. But Sisters of Mercy do definitely carve out a path in the genre that I think of as more "goth" than any of the aforementioned The Cure albums. So I can enjoy this as it's own thing. There are a few really strong songs here: like Dominion/Mother Russia, 1959, This Corrosion, and Never Land. But some of the others are devoured by the aesthetic, without giving the songs themselves a chance to shine. I will also say that while the vocals slot really nicely into the sound here: I don't think Andrew Eldritch is really a stand out presence. But regardless of some little complaints, I thought this was really enjoyable, and I'm glad I heard it.

Love some of this, didn't expect to be a fan at all - Mother Russia and This Corrosion are ace

Fun, intense, a little vampire-y. Really answers the question, what if the Cold War happened but you were also goth? 100% on the high end of a 3 but still a 3.

Season: True Winter
Favorite Song: Flood I

Based on the opening moments I imagined Floodland as having the familiar sonic palette to post-punk bands of the era, particularly Echo and the Bunnymen. The gothic element transforms it though, making The Sisters significantly eerier, darker and moodier than their post-punk counterparts. Despite this it doesn’t shy away from pop sensibilities, folding in hooky melodies in frequently unlikely places. I can see how they became a cult hit as they are pushing the gothic aspect of their sound further than any major acts that come to mind (The Cure, Joy Division, Nick Cave, Swans). It's a flavour that I haven’t yet heard elsewhere.

This was fun!

I only liked 1959

Spookyscary

"Dominion" har jeg hørt før, og liker godt. Om jeg ikke husker feil er den med i GTA4?

Uansett så hadde jeg høye forventninger fordi jeg liker gothisk rock og mørk synthmusikk fra 80-tallet. De innfrir nesten helt.

Jeg blir sugd inn i mørke synthlandskap og trives godt, og i starten liker jeg den David Bowie-aktige vokalen. Tenker på Molchat Doma når jeg hører "Flood I" og føler det ikke burde vært sol ute mens jeg hører.

"Lucretia My Reflection" høres ut som en gothisk versjon av "White Wedding" mens "1959" kunne vært en Nick Cave-cover. Også kult i min bok.

Høydepunktet er også platas lengste. "This Corrosion" minner meg igjen om Billy Idol. Kanskje jeg er mer fan av Billy Idol enn jeg trodde? Men etter dette går lufta ut av ballongen. "Flood II" har instrumentering jeg liker godt, men jeg merker jeg er litt lei av vokalen, og drømmer om en Robert Smith-aktig gjestevokalist til å bryte opp. De to neste låtene føles som bonusspor, jeg kunne fint klart meg uten.

Setter på "This Corrosion" igjen

can acknowledge that this is well executed, but it’s hard for me to get past just how self-indulgent it feels. Everything is turned up to eleven: the cavernous production, the endless drama, the unwavering commitment to mood over movement. It’s not sloppy or half-baked. If anything, it’s too committed to its own aesthetic.

There’s a certain admiration I have for how fully formed the vision is. This band knew exactly what they were going for, and they achieved it. But that vision leaves very little room for the listener. The songs often feel more like vehicles for atmosphere than something I want to engage with musically or emotionally.

I can hear why this record is influential, and I don’t think it’s bad. It just doesn’t invite me in. After a while, the weight of it all becomes tiring rather than immersive. Respect where it’s due, but this is not a world I feel any need to revisit.

Pretty OK? I wish we had half stars so I could feel better about giving this 3 stars.

It's sort of a cool, goth sound. Normally I'd probably only give 3 but I need to be more generous on here I think.

I'm not sure I've ever heard of this group.

This kind of sounds like it's straight out of a creepy David Lynch movie. And if that's your jam, you might really enjoy this. It's not my jam, so I didn't really enjoy it. It's not terrible, but not very good. Also, these songs all generally feel longer than they should be.