Review: Red, Release the Panic

While I'm not too much of a big fan of Christian music anymore, I do still follow some bands from time to time. It's always interesting to see the evolution of a band, especially when they drop from a label and start independent again (like Thousand Foot Krutch's release last year). Red has been around for a while, and they're still on the label that signed them from the beginning. So far, not much has changed for the band musically. When I hear a new album is coming out for band like this, I always give them the benefit of the doubt that something will have changed. I wondered if Release the Panic was going to be a change of pace for them.

Unfortunately, Red is the same band they were back in 2006 with their Linkin Park-esque debut. The heavy power chords and sing-along choruses are there again, but nothing maturity wise has happened. It seems they really focus on a few songs that keep them different from other Christian rock bands, and succumb to the standard formula for the rest of the record. Stand out tracks on this album are the opener and title track, particularly because it reminds me of how I felt about Demon Hunter's debut. A great heavy track with intensity, showing the talent in the members. But then, "Perfect Life" and "Die For You" just take the passion away. The tracks ring hollow with a message of cheesy lyrics, "Someone please tell me what I'm supposed to do / Cause you hate me / but I love you". The song speaks of the need to love others when they hate us, but doesn't offer up any solutions. While it might be hard to do that in song, the track fails to stir up any emotion but the hate that an individual ultimately might have.

Red got their start in Pennsylvania in 2004.

"Damage" is similar to "Release the Panic", with a driving guitar line and grungy vocals, perfect for Red's style. The band can also play pretty decent ballads, like "Hold Me Now", featuring some of the highest pitched vocals I've ever heard from the band. But the lyrics are still bland, and leave much to be desired. "If We Only" is another track that reminds me of the band's older material, with strings and deep screams over the guitar tone. Another good ballad follows with "So Far Away", but this is where the album runs out of steam. There's nothing to set the remaining tracks apart from the rest of the album, nor the rest of the bands' discography.

It's disappointing to see a band with so much potential still be stuck in the same rut as they were years ago. By now, I feel like Red should be at the absolute top of their game, and Release the Panic is not even close to the best they can do. There were moments on End of Silence and even Innocence & Instinct that I thought they'd get there eventually. But they're holding back for some reason, and riding a line between heavy and soft, to please as many fans as possible. Let's see if the next album in a couple years finds them diving heavier.