Floodland
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| Floodland | ||
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| Album by The Sisters of Mercy | ||
| Released | November 13, 1987 | |
| Genre | Alternative | |
| Length | 49 min 16 sec | |
| Record label | Merciful Records/WEA | |
| Producers | Andrew Eldritch, Larry Alexander, Jim Steinman | |
| Professional reviews | ||
| RollingStone review | 3/5 | link (http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album?id=99834&pageid=rs.ArtistSearch&pageregion=triple1) |
| Robert Christgau | C+ | link (http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=sisters+of+mercy) |
| Allmusic.com | 4.5/5 | link (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&uid=UIDSUB020405270802332642&sql=Axjevad8kv8wo) |
| Alternative Press | #43 in 'Top 99 Of '85-'95', included in '10 Essential Goth Albums' | July 1995, p.87; November, 2001, p.104 (http://www.buy.com/retail/proreviews/product.asp?sku=60077897&loc=109&PageFormat=7) |
| The Sisters of Mercy Chronology | ||
| First and Last and Always (1985) | Floodland (1987) | Vision Thing (1990) |
Floodland was the album released by The Sisters of Mercy in 1987, complete with heavy production, layers of synthesizer, choral singing, and the drum machine Doktor Avalanche.
Floodland sees The Sisters of Mercy becoming the artistic output of one man, lead singer and songwriter Andrew Eldritch, with his previous bandmates off in other bands such as The Mission and Ghost Dance. Andrew Eldritch claims that bassist Patricia Morrison, the only other official member of The Sisters of Mercy at the time, did not perform on the album and was hired only for promotional purposes. She is not credited on the album's sleeve, and is present only in pictures.
On the songs "Dominion/Mother Russia" and "This Corrosion", producer Jim Steinman added his over-the-top production values. The driving dance-floor hit "Lucretia My Reflection" with its repeating bass-line has become a staple in some nightclubs.
The album does have some quiet moments, as well. "1959" consists of just piano and vocals, a quiet ballad to a fan named Isabelle who wrote Eldritch a fan mail. And "Driven Like The Snow" has an almost ambient quality at times.
While not quite a concept album, Floodland has many recurring themes. The most obvious being the flood itself, a post-apocalyptic reference to tidal floods after nuclear war.
It was described by Andrew Eldritch as 'a fine album (http://www.thesistersofmercy.com/gen/discog.htm)',
The album arguably sent the Gothic genre spiraling away from the guitar-driven sound of the early and mid 1980s and inspired the next wave of goth bands such as London After Midnight and Switchblade Symphony.
The Sisters of Mercy did not follow the album with live performances.
Track listing
Written by Andrew Eldritch. Produced by Eldritch with Larry Alexander except "This Corrosion" produced by Jim Steinman; "Dominion/Mother Russia" produced by Steinman/Alexander/Eldritch; "Torch" produced by Eldritch.
Side one:
- "Dominion/Mother Russia" - 7:01
- backing vocals: The New York Choral Society
- "Flood I" - 6:22
- "Lucretia My Reflection" - 4:57
- "1959" - 4:09
Side two:
- "This Corrosion" - 10:55
- backing vocals: The New York Choral Society (choir parts); Holly Sherwood; Curtis King; Brenda King; Tawatha Agee; Gina Taylor; Vaneese Thomas
- "Flood II" - 6:47
- "Driven Like The Snow" - 6:27
- "Never Land (a fragment)" - 2:46
Additional tracks:
- "Torch" - 3:51 (cassette/CD only)
- "Colours" - 7:18 (CD only)