Grey Britian - Gallows

Gallows, the rats of "London town", are one of the most outspoken, energetic and successful “hardcore punk” bands of the 21st century. After their first release "Orchestra of Wolves", Gallows signed to Warner, and subsequently released “Grey Britain” in 2009. As a result of this record deal, “Grey Britain” is a more polished album, with a clear theme, and a much bigger budget driving production. “Grey Britain” is an exposure of modern day Britain; a cesspool of degeneracy, ruled by violent youth, fuelled by sex, alcohol, and drugs.

The album opens with "The Riverbank", an apt foreshadowing of the album to come. The drone of a siren, followed by the sounds of a riverbank combined with the low hum of an orchestra, which is possibly a nod to their previous album, "Orchestra of Wolves". At about 1.30 we hear the presence of a guitar, which explodes into the song 10 or so seconds later. Frank Carter then approaches the microphone. Frank Carter's voice is an acquired taste. At first, the majority of listeners will screw up their faces to the harsh, violent, angry shrieks, but after a while, listeners find themselves understanding the subtext of these shrieks, and eventually appreciating them. Britain is told to be crumbling, the crown losing its touch, and depicts a disturbingly morbid scene of death, destruction, and the pleading for suicide.

"London Is the Reason" begins with a slow paced drum beat, which draws comparisons to “Black Flag”, and a whiney guitar track, reminiscent of bands such “Ghost of a Thousand” and “Hexes”. The first verse portrays a dytopian view of future London, a theme that occurs right throughout the song. Bodies piled so high they fill the rivers, and the streets becoming a feeding ground for a grotesque human race. The song portrays London as a cancer on the back of Britain, and if this cancer is not cut out, Britain will crumble and die.

Gallows have openly condemned religion for the way it manipulates through fear, glorifies the weak, and promotes lies and liars. "Leeches" is an open attack on Catholicism, with such lines as, "A million Hail Mary's won't save you now. We're burning all your churches down.". "Leeches" shows off Gallows' pissed off attitude more than any other song on the record. The track is ruled my vocals and Steph Carter's eerie pulsating guitar. "Leeches" has the most melody of all the songs on the record, and from this point on, Gallows really start to bare their teeth.
"Black Eyes" takes firm aim at politics in Britain, and in particular Tony Blair. In an interview, Frank Carter stated that, in his mind, when politicians tell lies, their eyes bleed black, hence the song title. Lee Dorrian truly excels in this song, and displays the best piece of drumming in the album, and should really be applauded for it.

"I Dread the Night" explodes the mindset of alcoholism, and the way alcohol is used as an escape from the daily grind, and allows people to feel free in such a restrictive world. "I Dread the Night" continues the same type of swaggering riffs present throughout the album, though introduces many more break beats and breakdowns than previous songs. In my opinion, musically, this is one of the finer moments on “Grey Britain”.

Frank Carter really shows his chops in "Death Voices". Not only is it perfect executed, but lyrically, it is the catchiest song on the album, and has since become a crowd favourite. Instrumentally, the song follows the same formula as the previous songs, a formula that continues to work effectively.
"The Vulture" is the most surprising song on the record. Frank Carter shows his prowess as a singer, by singing three verses of passable clean vocals. It becomes apparent about half way through the track, that it has been greatly influenced by Metallica, echoing songs such as “Master of Puppets” and “One”. This track, clean vocals aside, is one of the lowest points of the album, and feels more like an experiment than a finished track.

From here on out, there is only really one more stand out track, “Misery”. “Misery” begins with a piano solo, which is interrupted at about one minute, by a filthy bass line, and one of Frank Carter’s most aggressive vocal introductions, really showing off his talent as a front man. All in all, “Grey Britain” is one of the finest punk records that you will ever hear, really tapping into the raw energy of bands such as “Black Flag” and “Dead Kennedys”, while drawing from contemporary bands such as “Cancer Bats”, “Hexes” and “Ghost of a Thousand”. “Grey Britain” truly is a shining light in an industry dominated by horrendous music, and was one of the top releases of 2009.