Essential Records' two time GRAMMY-nominated hard rock outfit RED packs a potent sonic punch on its third project, Until We Have Faces, a record that leaps out of the speakers with a ferocity and complexity reflecting the band's growth and intensity.
From the opening seconds of "Feed The Machine" through the final, contemplative moments of "Hymn For The Missing," the four-man unit of vocalist Michael Barnes, guitarist Anthony Armstrong, bassist Randy Armstrong and drummer Joe Rickard shows both maturity and abandon can coexist within the various dimensions of rock RED inhabits.
The new album's overarching theme is a search for true identity, inspired by a number of sources, including author C.S. Lewis' book of similar title, Till We Have Faces. The band itself is working through its own new identity - as a four-piece with the addition of drummer Rickard.
Until We Have Faces takes listeners down the path of recognizing the hollowness of life until finding their true identity (revealed on "Faceless"), the idea of creative destruction unveiled in the midst of new life (found on "Let It Burn"), and simultaneously presenting the positive energy found even "in a world so cold" (explored on the infectious, melodic ballad "Not Alone").
Paired again with award-winning producer Rob Graves, Until We Have Faces features RED in its most musically intense place to date - "a combination of our first two records, but on steroids," Michael Barnes notes - daring both RED and its fans to catapult into new rock territories.
Click here to add a video. Click to add lyrics if not listed.
Until We Have Faces| Posted January 31, 2011
This is RED's best album so far. It is intense and purely epic. Feed the Machine is my favorite off it and Faceless is also great. This is a must have album!
Until We Have Faces| Posted January 30, 2011
4 Stars/85%
Red’s been making waves in the Christian and mainstream markets since 2006. End of Silence, of Breathe Into Me, Already Over, and Wasting Time fame, was one of the best selling Christian records of that year (along with Skillet’s Comatose and Flyleaf’s eponymous.) Innocence and Instinct turned everything up a notch in 2009, with better production and more in depth lyrics. The disc contains some of my favorite Red songs, such as Forever and Death of Me. Now, a mere 2 years later, Red’s put out another record and the question on everyone’s mind is whether they will keep the upward trend, and continue to improve upon the sound from Innocence and Instinct, or will they try to appease fans and the mainstream, to disastrous results.
Until We Have Faces kicks off brutally with the most aggressive song on the record, Feed the Machine. Its blend of heaviness and chaos with more calm, passive pieces makes it thrilling to listen to. The bridge features schizophrenic whispering before Michael begins screaming “Wake up!” The song, however, is very similar to something Breaking Benjamin would put out, and the extended outro tends to result in skipping the last minute-and-a-half. Faceless continues the energy output, with a song that has a much more “Red” feel to it. Faceless is the title track, so to speak, as the bridge states “We are the nameless…. we are the faceless…. we are the hopeless…. Until we have faces!” The song speaks of the struggle within all of us to be a nobody – to blend into the world, to take the path of least resistance. But then we realize the desire comes from the whisperings of a monster, the enemy. The chorus is a plea to God, asking for a solution “Can You replace this, so hollow and faceless?”
Lie to Me (Denial) has a creepy sounding string intro, before blistering guitars kick in – with one even sounding like it’s bordering on a melodic metal. The song is from God to the listener, taking the part of an abused partner in a relationship. The chorus proclaims “Lie to me! You can feel that this love was never real. Walk away, but you can learn to love again. Lie to me! You can leave; I’ll still be here when you see you’re not alone. You don’t have to run again and leave me in denial!” Let it Burn is the album’s first ballad, and while it’s not my favorite one, I found myself humming this one’s chorus, regardless. It’s not your typical kind of catchy, but still has a melody that sticks in your head regardless. The song speaks of all the negativity we endure, and asks how long we’ll be willing to endure when there’s a cure within our reach – God.
Buried Beneath sounds very much like a 12 Stones song, even the way Michael sings. Not necessarily a bad thing, but not as creative as Lie to Me or Faceless. The song is a plea to God to save us from being “Buried beneath” our sins and everyday lives. Not Alone is a very slow song, and one of the weakest cuts from Until We Have Faces. It’s not necessarily bad – I can see myself enjoying it every once in awhile, but it’s not a “hit repeat” song either. The song is again from God to the listener, reminding them that He’s always with them, through the good and bad. Watch You Crawl kicks things into high-gear again, though it sounds similar to Kutless circa To Know That You’re Alive – specifically The Disease and the Cure or the title track. The songs is basically a large middle finger to what I refer to as “the thief” in the case of songs like this (It’s Not Me from Skillet, Game On by Disciple, etc), referring to the Bible verse stating “the thief….comes to destroy….”
If Feed the Machine is the most aggressive and chaotic, The Outside is the straight-up heaviest. Featuring heavily aggressive vocals from Michael and constant riffing (rather than the guitar stopping during the verses, which is so prevalent on most other songs of the record), this song is sure to please fans of Let Go, Confession, and Out from Under from previous Red records. The chorus is slightly more melodic, but the song is pretty consistently heavy. Who We Are is my personal favorite. It’s a rock anthem, declaring “We can be who we are, now we are alive. We can fight, they cannot contain us. It’s who we are – we are undying, we are forever. We won’t hide our faces from the light, eliminate the space between us. It’s who we are – we are forever, it’s who we are.” The bridge is Michael screaming “We will not die! We’ll never die! We will not deny! Now we are alive!” It’s an awesome, positive song to just get pumped up, physically and spiritually, to.
The record closes with two slower songs. Best is Yet to Come, my favorite slow song on the record, is a reflective song that also looks toward the future in a positive light, stating “After all that we’ve been through, and after all we’ve left in pieces, I still believe our lives have just begun. Now the past can be outrun, and I know You are the reason, I still believe the best is yet to come.” Hymn of the Missing is extremely slow, piano ballad, beautiful as a record closer. As an individual song, however, it doesn’t have very high replay value.
To answer the question I posed in the intro, the trend is still upward. Until We Have Faces is not only more overtly Christian than Innocence and Instinct, it fixes one of the main complaints I had about the record – the production and songwriting focus seemed centered around the first 2 tracks, and few other songs, but others were left obviously weaker in both departments. On this album, all track gets equal treatment, especially in production – they all sound great. However, a few things do stick out that could have been better – first is the track order. This is supposed to be a hard rock album, and is. However, a few things, such as ending with two ballads in a row (Alien Youth, anybody) and having a ballad-heavy-ballad section throw the momentum slightly. Another rocker or two and a slight rearrangement of the track order might have made this record better. Also, three of the ballads are fairly weak, and 2 of them are really record-only – that is, they fit in the record, complete it, but I wouldn’t listen to them outside of it. Finally, all the songs follow the same verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus format. Variation, anyone? I guess not. Expanding on that, in the bridges, there is not one song that contains a guitar solo. None. That’s slightly deterrent, however Red’s sound manages to make it seem like the songs are complete anyway, so that’s not a huge complaint.
My favorite tracks:
Who We Are
Faceless
Lie to Me (Denial)
Best Is Yet to Come
Long Awaited| Posted January 28, 2011
I have both their previous albums and they are awesome. I have listened to many tracks on this album and I think I like Feed the Machine alot. I am ordering it off of Itunes to get the special track. If you want to have to some real lyrics and good rock music go with this album.
Until We Have Faces| Posted January 27, 2011
Red's third studio album has been highly anticpated for quite some time. Do they deliver? We'll find out.
"Feed The Machine" is the first track, and starts out with a suspenseful intro which leads to a heavy guitar. To be honest, Red is a bit harder than what I usually listen to, but I found the lyrics of this song to be amazing! I like the message of rebelling against the way the world tells us to do things. Overall, the music is hard, and there is quite a bit of screamo, but I'm sure Red fans will love this album if "Feed The Machine" is any indicator of cd as a whole.
Second is "Faceless",another rocker. Once again, the lyrics are strong, acknowledging that they cannot live unless God saves them. "Can't find who I am without you near me/I'd give anything to live
Cause without you I don't exist/You're the only one who saves me from myself. I really appreciate the strong Christian content I've been hearing. There is more screamo in this track. Although I am not a screamo fan, I'll try to look at this from a non-biased viewpoint. From start to finish "Faceless" is a strong track which I am sure many will love.
Next up we have, "Lie To Me (Denial)", which starts off suspenseful, with voices and strings, which leads into a guitar riff. I feel a little overwhelmed by the heavy guitars by now, but this song lets up a bit in the verses. The lyrical content could be taken as God speaking to someone, or as a relationship between two people. I find Red has very strong lyrics that are well written. "You’re not alone, you don’t have to run again". The music feels a bit generic, but not to the point of annoyance.
"Let It Burn" slows things down some, which I feel was something needed at this very point. A plea for someone to keep fighting as they go through struggles, but to let their facade burn, and accept God's help. The bridge is absolutely amazing, and I really love this song. The music and the lyrics complement each other perfectly. I like the fact they got a woman to help out with the bgvs, she was a perfect addition to this song.
"Buried Beneath" is another slower song. This song really speaks volumes. The lyrics are a cry to God for help before they are "buried beneath" their sins and darkness. the second verse references a house built on the sand, referring to Matthew 7. I find a lot of Red's slower songs sound alike, but never hinder the song. Overall this is a pretty good track with solid lyrics.
Next is "Not Alone", the slowest so far. I love the lyrical messages we find in this album. Every song has some sort of message of how we can overcome through Christ. This song has such a beautiful message of hope, how god will never leave us and carry us when we feel we can't go on anymore. This is definitely my choice for the best song on "Until We Have Faces".
"Watch You Crawl" comes up next, and brings the rock back. I find this song to be an angry tirade against someone who has tried to destroy him. I initially didn't like this song because of how hateful the lyrics sounded, but I could see this song being a declaration against the Devil.
"The Outside" is the eighth track, and the intro to this song is creative, and a bit freaky. The lyrics tell the story of someone who is daring to go against what he has been taught, and now sees ''that you're dying on the inside" and "I’m not you/I will never be you/I won’t let you pull me through". This song proves to have a strong message and solid music.
"Who We Are" has a very good intro, and I find I really enjoyed this song. The lyrics "We can be who we are now we are alive/We can fight, they cannot contain us/It's who we are, we are not dying/We're us forever/We won't hide our faces from the light/Eliminate the space between us" are sure to become an anthem among Red fans. Definitely one of the best songs on the album, with solid vocals, lyrics and music.
"Best Is Yet To Come" is a song about a relationship, possibly a marriage headed for divorce. The lyrics speak of a desire to do whatever it takes to fix things, because the "best is yet to come". Perhaps I'm wrong and it's a song to God from a heart that desires to get things right with God. Either way, it's a beautiful song that is sure to be a favorite.
Last on the album is "Hymn For The Missing." It's a soft ballad that tells of a heart that wanders lost and wounded.I found this song to be a bit confusing, as to whether it is a romantic relationship gone wrong, or a song for the hurting. Seeing the other lyrical themes in this album, I am guessing it to be the latter. Overall this is a decent ballad, but it almost feels like an odd way to close out the album.
Throughout "Until We Have Faces" we see a desire to change; cries from a heart that's desperate for the hope God gives, with a heavy, hard rock sound. In some songs the music seems a bit generic, and I would have liked to see a bit more diversity. However, "Until We Have Faces" is a solid album that many will enjoy.
Rocking, and never letting us down| Posted January 26, 2011
When I heard the news about the new album, I flipped.
Red has been a staple in my musical library since the start, and wow, they are still amazing.
I have heard the advance listen of this album, and it blew me away.
Every single song had that Red quality, a high stardard, fascinating vocals, stunning music, powerful strings, thrilling harmonies, and the spine-tingling screams.
Nothing beats this. Red has once again released their best album to date. Every time they best themselves, and I cannot believe the skill with which they do it.
Amazing Red, I am stunned once again by your amazing album.
Epic| Posted January 06, 2011
This album is the definition of epicness.
I've listened to this so many times. It is LEGIT. I'm at a loss for words. The album overall isn't as heavy as End of Silence or I&I but they recorded these songs so well. The majority of the songs are ballads but they are so mezmerizingly good. But other songs on this album are heavy. The heaviest they have ever done. The vocals are spectacular. Production is top notch. Everything from first chord struck to the awesome intos and to the last key played. I am definitely going to preorder this album.
Feed The Machine: 5/5 This song is great. It's heavy and it has a great message.
Faceless: 5/5 This is one of those songs that is saturated with Red's intensity.
Lie To Me(Denial): 5/5 Another great track. One of my personal favorites. Ever since i heard a small clip of this I was hooked. Amazing song.
Let It Burn: 5/5 Another awesome song. Just awesome.
Buried Beneath: 5/5 Awesome into! Another one of those haunting tracks.
Not Alone: 5/5 A beautiful ballad with a good message.
Watch You Crawl: 5/5 Great son. Sounds much like Breaking Benjamin both musically and lyrically.
The Outside: 4/5 this song is heavy and I like that but the chorus is a bit lacking. Good song overall.
Who We Are: 5/5 Another one of those songs that had me hooked since I heard a clip. Awesome anthem.
Best Is Yet To Come: 5/5 Absolutely beautiful song with amazing lyrics.
Hymn For The Missing: 5/5 A very beautifully haunting song.
Can't wait| Posted January 02, 2011
Red has a great track record with me. I've already heard the two singles and they sound really good. I think this is just gonna be another great album from Red.
to add lyrics if not listed.
