Release The Panic (Deluxe Edition)

RED hit the music scene with a bang back in 2006 with the release of End of Silence. Stylistically ranging from hard rock to metal, RED featured violin and cello along with their driving drum beat and gargantuan guitar riffs.


Now seven years and 3 albums later, Release The Panic hit the airwaves and download sites February 5th. Michael Barnes delivers what is undoubtedly the greatest vocal delivery of his career. Ranging from the low, raw screams found on “Damage” to the beautiful flowing vocals heard on “Hold Me Now” Barnes’ vocal talent that has never gone unnoticed and it takes the forefront on the new album.
Not content to sit comfortably on their past successes, RED has brought out a varied sound with Release The Panic. Gone is the emphasis on strings to the disappointment of early RED fans. A greater emphasis has been placed on guitars and vocals. The keyboard also finds a key central place on Release The Panic.
Perhaps the greatest disappointment of Release The Panic is the lack of a defining, attention grabbing single. While the new tracks are solid, none grab you like past hits such as “Breathe into Me”, “Feed the Machine”, or “Fight Inside”.
RED will surely contin...

RED hit the music scene with a bang back in 2006 with the release of End of Silence. Stylistically ranging from hard rock to metal, RED featured violin and cello along with their driving drum beat and gargantuan guitar riffs.

Now seven years and 3 albums later, Release The Panic hit the airwaves and download sites February 5th. Michael Barnes delivers what is undoubtedly the greatest vocal delivery of his career. Ranging from the low, raw screams found on “Damage” to the beautiful flowing vocals heard on “Hold Me Now” Barnes’ vocal talent that has never gone unnoticed and it takes the forefront on the new album.

Not content to sit comfortably on their past successes, RED has brought out a varied sound with Release The Panic. Gone is the emphasis on strings to the disappointment of early RED fans. A greater emphasis has been placed on guitars and vocals. The keyboard also finds a key central place on Release The Panic.

Perhaps the greatest disappointment of Release The Panic is the lack of a defining, attention grabbing single. While the new tracks are solid, none grab you like past hits such as “Breathe into Me”, “Feed the Machine”, or “Fight Inside”.

RED will surely continue to hold their past fans enthralled with their latest endeavour. It remains to be seen if any newbies come into the RED fold with this album. Many of the songs seem to be headed into the bottomless pit of the “radio friendly” generic music that remains so popular with Christian music top 40. A pleasurable aspect to Release The Panic is the daring of RED to drop their tried and true approach and to create a work that is significantly different from their previous efforts. Only record sales will determine if it was a worthy change.

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With RED's 4th studio album, Release the Panic, RED have changed their sound quite drastically, even though they still rock hard. They teamed up with producer Howard Benson, who's worked on other records for Christian rock bands such as Five Score and Seven Years Ago by Relient k and Awake by Skillet.
Howard Benson seems to have done a few things to RED's sound. For one, he's made their songs alot shorter. There's only one song that clocks in the four minute range (not including the deluxe edition tracks)), which is somewhat of a rareity for RED. Most of the songs are in the 2-3 minute range. However, the quickness of the songs does not detract from the quality. They are still able to say what they need to say in the short amounts of time. The songs also include more synths and less strings. I can tell they're moving from the metal stuff to more mainstream hard rock stuff. The album is still however, very enjoyable.
The album opens with the hard hitting title track, which is my favorite song from the album. It has a slowly building drum and bass intro before the guitars come crashing in. I really enjoy the screams from Michael Barnes on the chorus, and there's some...

With RED's 4th studio album, Release the Panic, RED have changed their sound quite drastically, even though they still rock hard. They teamed up with producer Howard Benson, who's worked on other records for Christian rock bands such as Five Score and Seven Years Ago by Relient k and Awake by Skillet.
Howard Benson seems to have done a few things to RED's sound. For one, he's made their songs alot shorter. There's only one song that clocks in the four minute range (not including the deluxe edition tracks)), which is somewhat of a rareity for RED. Most of the songs are in the 2-3 minute range. However, the quickness of the songs does not detract from the quality. They are still able to say what they need to say in the short amounts of time. The songs also include more synths and less strings. I can tell they're moving from the metal stuff to more mainstream hard rock stuff. The album is still however, very enjoyable.
The album opens with the hard hitting title track, which is my favorite song from the album. It has a slowly building drum and bass intro before the guitars come crashing in. I really enjoy the screams from Michael Barnes on the chorus, and there's some great guitar and drum work courtesy of Athony Armstrong and Joe Rickard. The first single "Perfect Life" is next. This is one of the more pop-oriented songs on the album, and I defintely seeing it doing well on radio. I love how the drums start the song off and really help the song crash in on the chorus. This is one song you're sure to get stuck in your head! "Die For You" is a dance-rock song with heavy guitars and a dance beat. This is another highlight off the album. "Damage" took a while to grow on me, but now I'm starting to enjoy the song, especially the main guitar riff. "Same Disease" is an enjoyable song, but not a stand out of the album. The first ballad on the record, "Hold Me Now" comes next, and is the best ballad on the album. It reminds me alot of "Not Alone" off their last record Until We Have Faces.
"If We Only" picks up the pace and sounds like an old school RED song. This one also took some time to grow on me, and now I really like it. The last three tracks are power ballads. "So Far Away" and "Glass House" are not bad songs, but probably my least favorites on the album. Album closer "The Moment We Come Alive" is very good, however, and I think it's a great album closer. It reminds of "The Best Is Yet To Come," also off Until We Have Faces
I do have the deluxe edition of Release the Panic, but it doesn't make the album way better or anything. The two original songs, "Love Will Leave A Mark" and "As You Go," are actually pretty good and I'd definitely reccomend getting those two songs. The remixes weren't necessary, and although I like the acoustic version of "Breathe Into Me," I think they could've done without the remixes.
Overall, I enjoyed Release the Panic very much. This is RED's best album to date, and I'm interested to see what they do if they continue this new sound. While diehard fans of their last 3 records might not enjoy it that much, hard rock fans that don't like the heavy, lots of screaming stuff RED has done in the past will enjoy this album. Pick up the album today! So far, it's my #1 Christian album of 2013!

Grammy-nominated band RED has always put out quality music with little twists. Their first album End of Silence featured a nice touch of piano along with heavy riffs. Innocence and Instinct went more to strings, which instilled a greater emotional response in their songs. Until We Have Faces was where RED started moving towards the mainstream type of hard rock, which shows in songs such as "Faceless" and "Lie to Me".

Many of the longtime followers and fans of RED will find Release the Panic to be a big change. This album sounds more like the popular hard rock outfits such as Papa Roach, Linkin Park, and Three Days Grace. Lots of technical and electronic effects are intertwined with the intense driving melodies that Mike and the Armstrong brothers put out. It came as a surprise to me when I first heard the songs that RED released to the public on YouTube. I never really got a feel of the music the first time, but after a few times listening I really started enjoying them a lot more.

The intro and title track Release the Panic is a driving, mosh-pit inducing jam. The drum roll leads into a booming bass riff. The lyrics come in, and the verse builds all the way into th...

Grammy-nominated band RED has always put out quality music with little twists. Their first album End of Silence featured a nice touch of piano along with heavy riffs. Innocence and Instinct went more to strings, which instilled a greater emotional response in their songs. Until We Have Faces was where RED started moving towards the mainstream type of hard rock, which shows in songs such as "Faceless" and "Lie to Me".

Many of the longtime followers and fans of RED will find Release the Panic to be a big change. This album sounds more like the popular hard rock outfits such as Papa Roach, Linkin Park, and Three Days Grace. Lots of technical and electronic effects are intertwined with the intense driving melodies that Mike and the Armstrong brothers put out. It came as a surprise to me when I first heard the songs that RED released to the public on YouTube. I never really got a feel of the music the first time, but after a few times listening I really started enjoying them a lot more.

The intro and title track Release the Panic is a driving, mosh-pit inducing jam. The drum roll leads into a booming bass riff. The lyrics come in, and the verse builds all the way into the chorus, where Mike screams out "Let it out, Let it out, Release the panic, O, Relase the panic". I honestly did not like this song right away, but now it's one of my favorites that they've made in any album. It really displays what RED is really all about.

Perfect Life is where RED starts to lean towards the pop side of rock. This is definitely the most catchy song on the album, with plenty of "yeah yeah" and the driving drum beat that accompanies Mike belting out the chorus, which tells how he doesn't want a "perfect life" full of glamour and sin, because it's just an "empty lie" that won't lead you to the ultimate goal of eternity in heaven with the Lord.

Die for You is my favorite song on this album and my favorite song that RED has ever assembled. This song has a sort of attitude to it that really displays the pride these guys have in serving the Lord. For example, right at the end of the bridge, after a sick guitar solo, Mike sings out "I ain't gonna change!" with a sort of twang that makes you want to laugh at first, but then you come to appreciate it and how it goes so well with the message that they put on display.

Damage is a slower, head-nodding jam. I'm not too fond of it because I've never really come to like a song with an excessive amount of scream in it, especially in the chorus. I understand why it's done though. It shows the anger that comes with the "damage" that sinners do when they become disobedient to God.

Same Disease picks up the pace a little bit and goes back to the pop side again. The drum backbeat keeps the beat going and Mike does a good job of being expressive while still keeping that edgy rock voice. The guitars are heavy, and they also help to keep the beat going along with the drums. Overall, it's a great filler.

Hold Me Now is a very emotional song. It's not slow, but Mike puts so much emotion in this song that it actually brought tears to my eyes (I'm not afraid to admit as a guy). His falsetto is sweet and light in the first chorus, and the second course is more of a cry to the Lord for comfort and protection. "Hold Me Now, 'til the fear is leaving, I am barely breathing. Crying out, these tired wings are falling, I need you to catch me." The lyrics admit that without God, we are weak and without life. With him, we are given new life, and we feel reborn through Christ.

If We Only goes back to the harder side of RED. This song could have easily been on Innocence and Instinct with the strings finally coming into play in the music. The bridge is where the strings are more prevolent. A hard intro leads into Mike speaking of surrender to the Lord and how we need to get over the sin that leaves us empty inside in the end. All in all, another solid filler.

So Far Away is a power ballad that begins with your classic power ballad guitar bringing us into the song. Mike comes in and lays out a well-sung verse that develops into chorus that again admits surrender to God. This song is more of a reflective melody that gets people thinking more about how they are living their lives and where they are with the Lord. Strings stick out much more in this song, adding to the emotion.

Glass House is another power ballad song that has symbolic meaning. Piano is a nice touch to Mike's lyrical singing in the verses. The chorus is powerful, with lots of drums, especially snare, and guitar chords. Glass House tells us of how transparent and fragile the things of this world that we adore are. It continues with the idea of surrender to God and letting him take away the pain in our souls and "make us whole again". Fantastic track.

The Moment We Come Alive ends the album on a very positive note. It has a more cheery feeling, with melodic riffs coming between lyrics. The background piano keeps the song light, while the driving guitar makes it heavy at the same time. My interpretation of this is the joy that comes when believers and followers in Christ unite to celebrate how their Lord has saved them and helped them through their hardest times. According to Mike, "We're a light that will never die" because we are in Christ and have the Holy Spirit leading us to the path of light.

Release the Panic should be and will be appreciated by new and old RED fans for years to come. The style is more electronic and pop based, but if it goes with them into their next album, it's a change for the better. Regardless, RED bleeds a Christian message throughout the record like they have done with the previous three. The main theme behind this album is to "relase the panic" that we have in our lives and getting rid of it in exchange for happiness with Our Savior Jesus Christ. I believe RED tells this message well like they do with every album they have. I pray that these guys continue to create music for our great and mighty God because they bring many to the Lord and do it in an amazing musical way.

These guys are intense; their commitment, musical style, artwork and live performance say so. I must confess, I was not happy when this album was released. I felt betrayed. I resisted the “new” sound as did many die-hard RED fans. Apparently, string infused rock are no longer a sound RED desire to cash in on. Despite altering the basic formula, they achieve something with “Release the panic.” In lieu of strings, electronic-esque sounds are successfully incorporated into RED's signature heavy rock. And I have to admit, it works. A part of me wants it to fail, because I love the old RED, but I cannot deny they have accomplished something. Even the casual listener would have to concede the production elements on tracks such as “Die for you,” “Damage” and “Same Disease” are impressively refined and pleasing to the ear. That said, there are other tracks on the album I find myself less excited about; “As you go,” “The moment we came alive,” “Glass House” and “Hold me now” are tracks I consider mediocre. I just don’t think the Howard Benson production machine did them justice; but then, how many albums are chocked full of timeless gems? On a more positive note, I found myself fa...

These guys are intense; their commitment, musical style, artwork and live performance say so. I must confess, I was not happy when this album was released. I felt betrayed. I resisted the “new” sound as did many die-hard RED fans. Apparently, string infused rock are no longer a sound RED desire to cash in on. Despite altering the basic formula, they achieve something with “Release the panic.” In lieu of strings, electronic-esque sounds are successfully incorporated into RED's signature heavy rock. And I have to admit, it works. A part of me wants it to fail, because I love the old RED, but I cannot deny they have accomplished something. Even the casual listener would have to concede the production elements on tracks such as “Die for you,” “Damage” and “Same Disease” are impressively refined and pleasing to the ear. That said, there are other tracks on the album I find myself less excited about; “As you go,” “The moment we came alive,” “Glass House” and “Hold me now” are tracks I consider mediocre. I just don’t think the Howard Benson production machine did them justice; but then, how many albums are chocked full of timeless gems? On a more positive note, I found myself falling in love with the song “Far away” and believe it to be one of the better tracks on the album. Lyrically and vocally “So far away” rivals RED’s classic ballad, “Start again.” Though, I might have liked the song better with a slightly softer guitar mix (yes, I said that). Now, let me address the title track, “Release the panic.” The song is disappointing and its message is misguided and confusing. Lyrically, it fails to grab me at a deep level emotionally and intellectually. The song opens with a groveling vocal/guitar fusion that immediately grabs the listener and peaks an interest, but from there...it is all downhill--sadly. It does play well live and RED will get some serious mileage out of it on tour. The remixes offered on the deluxe album are worthwhile and do justice to the original tracks. Thankfully, the rush to remix everything these days didn't diminish some of RED’s finer work.I will listen to this album and enjoy it, but I might not listen to it in its entirety. I may pick n’ choose and long for the days of the old RED under Rob Grave’s production prowess.

A grumpy old RED fan,

Bob Hunter

My 6 year old daughter loves RED. She loves them because I love them and listen to them regularly at home and in the car. It's important to me that my kids listen to good music with positive lyrics. I surround them with it and make sure they are listening to Christian music when I have control of the air waves. They are not fans of Bieber or One Direction. They are fans of RED, TobyMac, Thousand Foot Krutch, Building 429 ...

Release the Panic (I don't have the deluxe edition, so my review is really for the regular album) hits that threshold of scream-y music, more than their other albums, that I really don't prefer. And for that reason my 8 year old says she is not a fan of RED, because they scream too much. However, for me there is enough balance between the scream and the singing that I don't feel overwhelmed by it, and I don't feel I'm being screamed at... too much.

Right now, my favorite songs are Perfect Life and Hold Me Now, but I can't really say I have a least favorite song. The girls and I enjoyed watching the video for Release the Panic with the extension of the story from Feed the Machine.

We finally got to see them at Winter Jam. I enjoyed it very much, but th...

My 6 year old daughter loves RED. She loves them because I love them and listen to them regularly at home and in the car. It's important to me that my kids listen to good music with positive lyrics. I surround them with it and make sure they are listening to Christian music when I have control of the air waves. They are not fans of Bieber or One Direction. They are fans of RED, TobyMac, Thousand Foot Krutch, Building 429 ...

Release the Panic (I don't have the deluxe edition, so my review is really for the regular album) hits that threshold of scream-y music, more than their other albums, that I really don't prefer. And for that reason my 8 year old says she is not a fan of RED, because they scream too much. However, for me there is enough balance between the scream and the singing that I don't feel overwhelmed by it, and I don't feel I'm being screamed at... too much.

Right now, my favorite songs are Perfect Life and Hold Me Now, but I can't really say I have a least favorite song. The girls and I enjoyed watching the video for Release the Panic with the extension of the story from Feed the Machine.

We finally got to see them at Winter Jam. I enjoyed it very much, but their set was way too short!!

I have beeen following Red for probably about 2 years now, and I can say they are one of my favorite bands. This album specifically contains a different sound from their other albums, and it took me a couple times to listen to the songs to really get into them. At first I was disappointed with the first half of the album, but I found that after listening through a couple of times I have grown to accept the direction that Red is moving in as a band. I would still say overall that the first qtr of the album is not as good as the rest of the album, but your welcome to make that decision for yourself. As for the deluxe songs at the end (the last 3 remakes), it seemed like they tried to pull off a Skillet by giving them a techno sort of beat with fewer lyrics. I never understood that (I am a fan of the lyrics more than beats though) and I thought the originals were better except for Breathe Into Me which I think both versions are about equal. So I would probably recommend just getting the regular edition of the album if you had the choice. However, the album itself in my opinion is a huge hit if you like Christian Alternative/Rock music like I do. You can view the whole album here if yo...

I have beeen following Red for probably about 2 years now, and I can say they are one of my favorite bands. This album specifically contains a different sound from their other albums, and it took me a couple times to listen to the songs to really get into them. At first I was disappointed with the first half of the album, but I found that after listening through a couple of times I have grown to accept the direction that Red is moving in as a band. I would still say overall that the first qtr of the album is not as good as the rest of the album, but your welcome to make that decision for yourself. As for the deluxe songs at the end (the last 3 remakes), it seemed like they tried to pull off a Skillet by giving them a techno sort of beat with fewer lyrics. I never understood that (I am a fan of the lyrics more than beats though) and I thought the originals were better except for Breathe Into Me which I think both versions are about equal. So I would probably recommend just getting the regular edition of the album if you had the choice. However, the album itself in my opinion is a huge hit if you like Christian Alternative/Rock music like I do. You can view the whole album here if you would like...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yq0l8qa7htQ