''Floodland'' is the second studio album by English
gothic rock band
the Sisters of Mercy
The Sisters of Mercy is an English rock band, formed in 1980 in Leeds. After achieving early underground fame there, the band had their commercial breakthrough in the mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasi ...
. It was released on 16 November 1987, through
Merciful Release
Merciful Release is a record label started by Andrew Eldritch, frontman with Leeds band the Sisters of Mercy. As Eldritch stated in an early interview, he wanted to hear himself on the radio. He and Gary Marx (Mark Pairman) played and recorded o ...
internationally and distributed by
WEA
The Wea were a Miami-Illinois-speaking Native American tribe originally located in western Indiana. Historically, they were described as either being closely related to the Miami Tribe or a sub-tribe of Miami.
Today, the descendants of the ...
, with
Elektra Records handling the United States release. After the release of the band's debut studio album, ''
First and Last and Always'' (1985), members
Craig Adams and
Wayne Hussey
250px, Hussey performing at the M'era Luna Festival in 2004.
Jerry Wayne Hussey (born 26 May 1958) is an English musician who was born in Bristol, England. He is best known as the lead singer of The Mission, and the guitarist with The Sisters ...
left to form
the Mission, causing the dissolution of the Sisters of Mercy. As a result, band frontman
Andrew Eldritch
Andrew Eldritch (born Andrew William Harvey Taylor, 15 May 1959) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He is the frontman and only remaining original member of the Sisters of Mercy, a band that emerged from the British post-punk scene ...
formed a side project known as
the Sisterhood, recording new material with them. After the project's first album was received negatively overall, he went back to recording as part of the Sisters of Mercy and hired the Sisterhood member
Patricia Morrison
Patricia Anne Rainone (born January 14, 1962), better known by her stage name Patricia Morrison, is an American bass guitarist, singer and songwriter. She has worked with Bags, The Gun Club, Fur Bible, The Sisters of Mercy, and the Damned.
Bio ...
for the recording of a new album.
Eldritch wrote the songs of ''Floodland'' in
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
; the city's large amount of water influenced its title as well as the recurring lyrical theme of water. He then called upon Larry Alexander to produce the album with him and
Jim Steinman
James Richard Steinman (November 1, 1947 – April 19, 2021) was an American composer, lyricist and record producer. He also worked as an arranger, pianist, and singer. His work included songs in the adult contemporary, rock, dance, pop, mus ...
to produce the songs "
Dominion
The term ''Dominion'' is used to refer to one of several self-governing nations of the British Empire.
"Dominion status" was first accorded to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland, South Africa, and the Irish Free State at the 192 ...
" / "Mother Russia" and "
This Corrosion". Recording sessions began at
Power Station Studios in New York City during January 1987 and carried on throughout the first half of the year at
Strawberry Studios
Strawberry Studios was a recording studio in Stockport, England. Founded in 1968, it operated until the early 1990s.
Formation
The facility was originally called Inter-City Studios and located above a music store in the town centre. In early 1 ...
in Stockport and
The Wool Hall in Bath. Eldritch served as the vocalist, performed all instruments, and programmed the band's drum machine, "
Doktor Avalanche
The Sisters of Mercy is an English rock band, formed in 1980 in Leeds. After achieving early underground fame there, the band had their commercial breakthrough in the mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasin ...
".
The drum machine acted as the drum player; Morrison did not contribute to the album despite being a member of the Sisters of Mercy. In contrast to ''First and Last and Always'', ''Floodland'' was created in a less conventional way, being pieced together on computers using
sequencer
Sequencer may refer to:
Technology
* Drum sequencer (controller), an electromechanical system for controlling a sequence of events automatically
* DNA sequencer, a machine used to automatically produce a sequence readout from a biological DNA sam ...
s. The music incorporates the genres of gothic rock and
dark wave
Dark wave (also typeset as darkwave) is a music genre that emerged from the new wave and post-punk movement of the late 1970s. Dark wave compositions are largely based on minor key tonality and introspective lyrics and have been perceived as be ...
, while the lyrical content sees Eldritch cast as the observer of a slowly deteriorating world. Some of the events that inspired certain songs include the
Chernobyl disaster, the
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
, and the band's previous breakup.
The
single
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
s "This Corrosion", "Dominion", and "
Lucretia My Reflection
"Lucretia My Reflection" is a song by the English rock band the Sisters of Mercy. Released as the third and final single from their second studio album, '' Floodland'', in June 1988, it reached number 20 on the UK Singles Chart.
Overview
The son ...
" were released in promotion. "This Corrosion" peaked at number 7 on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
, while "Dominion" and "Lucretia My Reflection" peaked at number 13 and 20, respectively. ''Floodland'' debuted on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
at number 9, later being certified gold in UK by the
BPI for selling 100,000 copies. It also reached the top 40 in other European countries, including Switzerland. Despite initially receiving mixed reviews from
music critics, ''Floodland'' has retrospectively received praise and been considered a seminal gothic rock album by several critics.
Background
![Andrew Eldritch](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Andrew_Eldritch.jpg)
After the release of the Sisters of Mercy debut studio album ''
First and Last and Always'' in March 1985, frontman Andrew Eldritch intended for them to record an
ABBA
ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group ...
cover as a
single
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
, and tried to hire
Jim Steinman
James Richard Steinman (November 1, 1947 – April 19, 2021) was an American composer, lyricist and record producer. He also worked as an arranger, pianist, and singer. His work included songs in the adult contemporary, rock, dance, pop, mus ...
as a producer.
['' Spex'', August 1985, p. 5] Eldritch originally contacted him when the ABBA song
"Gimme Gimme Gimme" (1979) was part of the band's setlist. Steinman was interested in producing the cover version, but was too busy at that time. Shortly afterward, the Sisters of Mercy disbanded.
[Ruff, ''Spex'', January 1988] The break-up occurred while the band prepared their second studio album in October 1985, which was going to be titled ''Left on Mission and Revenge''. Eldritch, who had still intended to record the album but as a solo artist, called bassist
Patricia Morrison
Patricia Anne Rainone (born January 14, 1962), better known by her stage name Patricia Morrison, is an American bass guitarist, singer and songwriter. She has worked with Bags, The Gun Club, Fur Bible, The Sisters of Mercy, and the Damned.
Bio ...
that same month, who was on a tour of the United Kingdom with her band Fur Bible in support of
Siouxsie and the Banshees, asking Morrison to collaborate.
[Sutherland, '' Melody Maker'', June 1988, p. 14]
The music press reported the break-up of the band on 2 November 1985, announcing that "the Sisters of Mercy were down to singer Andrew Eldritch and his faithful drum machine
[Doktor Avalanche
The Sisters of Mercy is an English rock band, formed in 1980 in Leeds. After achieving early underground fame there, the band had their commercial breakthrough in the mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasin ...
] this week after guitarist
Wayne Hussey
250px, Hussey performing at the M'era Luna Festival in 2004.
Jerry Wayne Hussey (born 26 May 1958) is an English musician who was born in Bristol, England. He is best known as the lead singer of The Mission, and the guitarist with The Sisters ...
and bassist
Craig Adams left the band. Although this has scuppered recording plans for a new album this month, Andrew now intends to record the same album in the New Year and could well be using Wayne as a session guitarist.
..Andrew has also approached former
Gun Club
The Gun Club were an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, United States, which existed from 1979 to 1996. It was formed and led by singer-songwriter and guitarist Jeffrey Lee Pierce.
History Early days (1979–1980)
The Gun Club ...
bassist Patricia Morrison—now in Fur Bible—to play on the album, but it's not yet known whether Andrew will continue with the name Sisters of Mercy." Eldritch had no intention to carry on under the disformed band's name, as members who left to form
the Mission had an agreement with him that the name the Sisters of Mercy would be used by no one after the break-up.
[Sutherland, ''Melody Maker'', September 1987]
Eldritch released the single "Giving Ground" on 20 January 1986 as part of a project under the name
the Sisterhood, which features vocals by his musician friend
James Ray. At the end of February 1986, the
record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...
Merciful Release
Merciful Release is a record label started by Andrew Eldritch, frontman with Leeds band the Sisters of Mercy. As Eldritch stated in an early interview, he wanted to hear himself on the radio. He and Gary Marx (Mark Pairman) played and recorded o ...
announced that the "forthcoming Andrew Eldritch album which for some months has had the working title ''Left on Mission and Revenge''." The album was eventually titled ''Gift'', being released in July 1986, again by the Sisterhood. It was recorded at
Fairview Studios
Fairview Studios is an independent recording studio located in Willerby, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Established by a local man Keith Herd in 1966, it has recorded musical acts such as Def Leppard, Mick Ronson, Red Guitars, Mostly Autumn ...
in
Willerby,
Hull. Eldritch did not sing on the album for contractual reasons, though Morrison collaborated with him for the first time, contributing a
spoken passage on the track "Jihad". ''Gift'' was negatively received overall and Eldritch lost his
publishing deal with
RCA Music Limited as a result of it. A 12-inch EP by the Sisterhood entitled ''This Corrosion'' was planned for release and set to feature an American vocalist, whose identity was meant to be kept secret until release.
[Spencer; Strickland, ''Sounds'', February 1986] The EP had been recorded at Fairview Studios with
Alan Vega but remained unreleased, with Eldritch instead keeping the idea for when he would reboot the Sisters of Mercy.
[''Glasperlenspiel 06'', June 2003, p. 6]
Recording
![Patricia Morrison](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/08/Patricia_Morrison.jpg)
After what was dubbed the "Sisterhood fiasco" by ''
Sounds
In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid.
In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...
'',
[Scanlon, ''Sounds'', December 1987, p. 10] Eldritch decided to continue under the name the Sisters of Mercy, feeling as though doing so would improve the name's reputation after the previous fallout.
He also thought that it would have been nonsensical to change the name, as he still wrote songs the same way as before.
Eldritch, who in 1985 first moved to
Bramfeld
Bramfeld () is a quarter of Hamburg, Germany, in the borough of Wandsbek. It is located on the southeastern border of the borough, which lies in the northeastern part of the city. Bramfeld includes the former village of Hellbrook, but consists t ...
and then to
St. Pauli
St. Pauli (Sankt Pauli; ) is a quarter of the city of Hamburg belonging to the centrally located Hamburg-Mitte borough. Situated on the right bank of the Elbe river, the nearby Landungsbrücken is a northern part of the port of Hamburg. St. ...
, began to compose a new album while in
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
, under the
Warner Elektra Atlantic (WEA) label. The demos for the album were mainly recorded with a
Casio CZ-101
is a Japanese multinational electronics manufacturing corporation headquartered in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Its products include calculators, mobile phones, digital cameras, electronic musical instruments, and analogue and digital watches. It w ...
synthesiser, acoustic guitars and a new drum machine. At the time, Eldritch was attempting to find a MIDI drum machine of a modest price that featured a "tighter snare drum" sound.
Despite hiring her to play bass guitar on the album, Eldritch later claimed that Morrison did not contribute to the songwriting for it, with him saying that it was practically a solo record. Eldritch insinuated that she suffered from
writer's block
Writer's block is a condition, primarily associated with writing, in which an author is either unable to produce new work or experiences a creative slowdown. Mike Rose found that this creative stall is not a result of commitment problems or th ...
and was unable to come up with many musical ideas, also adding that he "couldn't even get her to pick up the bass in the first place."
[Riemann, '']Bravo
Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels
*Bravo (band), a Russian rock band
* Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984
*Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing company ...
'', September 1992, p. 28 He reaffirmed this in a 2012 interview with ''
Classic Rock
Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, primar ...
'', stating that she "didn't make the cut" and therefore did not appear on ''Floodland''.
Merciful Release office manager Boyd Steemson also gave confirmation that Morrison's contributions were minimal.
[McIntyre, ''Classic Rock'', July 2007, p. 61] Eldritch denied that his approach to songwriting had changed since the band split, saying "'
This Corrosion' sounds like 'Temple of Love' II, '1959' sounds like 'Afterhours' part 2. I don't see any difference or any real change. I think I just carry on where I stopped."
[Niechziol, ''ME/Sounds'', February 1988] He licensed the publishing to SBK Songs Limited, which is now part of
EMI Music Publishing
EMI Music Publishing Ltd. is a British multinational music publishing company headquartered in London, owned by parent company Sony Corporation of America.
In May 2018, Sony Music Publishing agreed to increase its stake in EMI to 90%, pending ...
.
![JimSecondNight](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/JimSecondNight.jpg)
The starting point for the album was the song "This Corrosion", which was set to be produced by Steinman. Eldritch had immediately thought of him when he came up with the idea for the song.
He stated that "when we were trying to sell 'Corrosion' to Steinman, we told him it was like the high-point of a Borgia's disco evening and he went for it."
Eldritch also used Steinman to get his record label to concede an appropriate recording budget. He figured that the label would not grant money to use on choirs, but that they would immediately do so if Steinman were to ask for it.
[Scanlon, ''Sounds'', December 1987, p. 9] According to Steemson, Max Hole, the head of WEA's
A&R, managed to get the band a budget of £50,000 for "This Corrosion".
The recording of "
This Corrosion" and "
Dominion
The term ''Dominion'' is used to refer to one of several self-governing nations of the British Empire.
"Dominion status" was first accorded to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland, South Africa, and the Irish Free State at the 192 ...
" / "Mother Russia" started during January 1987 in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
.
Steinman and Eldritch used
Power Station Studios in the city's
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
borough, where they worked with engineer Larry Alexander.
On both songs, Steinman used six background singers and 40 members of the New York Choral Society. Eldritch recalled that he was unsure as to why so many vocalists sung all at once, but noted that this "seemed like a good idea at the time" and worked out well in the end. Steinman mainly focused on the production of the choral singings and did not contribute much to the actual composition and
arrangement
In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...
s. This caused him to receive only partial production credit on "Dominion / Mother Russia".
The remainder of ''Floodland'' was recorded in England. Initially, Eldritch worked with an unknown producer, whom he eventually fired.
He called Alexander while in New York City and hired him as a co-producer. The two travelled to England, where they recorded at multiple studios. They spent time at
Strawberry Studios
Strawberry Studios was a recording studio in Stockport, England. Founded in 1968, it operated until the early 1990s.
Formation
The facility was originally called Inter-City Studios and located above a music store in the town centre. In early 1 ...
in
Stockport
Stockport is a town and borough in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt and Tame merge to create the River Mersey here.
Most of the town is within ...
before transitioning to
The Wool Hall in
Bath to finish recording. The mixing for the album was then done at
AIR Studios
Associated Independent Recording (AIR) is an independent recording company founded in London in 1965 by record producer Sir George Martin and his business partner John Burgess, after their departure from Parlophone. The studio complex was founded ...
in London.
Composition
Music
![AKAI S900](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/AKAI_S900.jpg)
The music of ''Floodland'' was described as a mix of
gothic rock and
dark wave
Dark wave (also typeset as darkwave) is a music genre that emerged from the new wave and post-punk movement of the late 1970s. Dark wave compositions are largely based on minor key tonality and introspective lyrics and have been perceived as be ...
.
In contrast to the Sisters of Mercy's previous album, ''
First and Last and Always'', which had been recorded in a conventional way, ''Floodland'' was pieced together on a computer that used
sequencers to help. Eldritch worked on the recorded parts with a
Voyetra Sequencer Plus, while a
Yamaha SPX-90 was used as an
effects unit
An effects unit or effects pedal is an electronic device that alters the sound of a musical instrument or other audio source through audio signal processing.
Common effects include distortion/overdrive, often used with electric guitar in el ...
and the parts were saved on a
Compaq Portable 286. The guitars were played by Eldritch himself, apart from the solo on "This Corrosion", which was played by Steinman's friend
Eddie Martinez.
The drum sounds on the album were sampled together from various drum machines with an
Akai S900
The Akai S900 is a 12-bit sampler, with a variable sample rate from 7.5 kHz through to 40 kHz. It was common in recording studios until it was superseded two years later by the S1000.
An expanded version, the Akai S950, was released in 1988 al ...
. The tom sound was from an
Oberheim DMX, which had previously been used on ''First and Last and Always''. The other drum sounds were from a
Yamaha RX-5
The Yamaha RX-5 is a programmable digital sample-based drum machine built by Yamaha Yamaha may refer to:
* Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services, established in 1887. The company is the largest shar ...
. The track "1959" features only the sound of a piano, but was pieced together with a sequencer by Eldritch and played without an actual piano.
Lyrics
![RK 1009 9874 St Pauli Köhlbrand](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/RK_1009_9874_St_Pauli_K%C3%B6hlbrand.jpg)
Regarding the title ''Floodland'', Eldritch realised that, after writing all the songs for the album, the theme of water came up multiple times throughout. He attributed the theme's recurrence to the amount of water within Hamburg, where he was writing these songs.
Michael Bonner of ''
Uncut
Uncut may refer to:
* ''Uncut'' (film), a 1997 Canadian docudrama film by John Greyson about censorship
* ''Uncut'' (magazine), a monthly British magazine with a focus on music, which began publishing in May 1997
* '' BET: Uncut'', a Black Enter ...
'' viewed Eldritch as casting himself in a role where he is a "jaded observer, watching cynically as he and the world slouch towards
Armageddon
According to the Book of Revelation in the New Testament of the Christian Bible, Armageddon (, from grc, Ἁρμαγεδών ''Harmagedōn'', Late Latin: , from Hebrew: ''Har Məgīddō'') is the prophesied location of a gathering of armies ...
," adding that the songs are bonded together by "images of the apocalypse that straddle the gap between the personal and the political."
''Floodland''s two-part opening track, "Dominion" / "Mother Russia", was inspired by "
Ozymandias
"Ozymandias" ( ) is a sonnet written by the English Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822). It was first published in the 11 January 1818 issue of '' The Examiner'' of London.
The poem was included the following year in Shelley's c ...
" (1818), a
Shelley sonnet about a tyrant whose legacy of conquest diminishes as time passes by, from which one line is lifted. Bonner noted that the song seemed to have been inspired by geopolitics of the
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
as well. Eldritch additionally took inspiration from his time in Central Europe during the aftermath of the 1986
Chernobyl disaster. He considered the song to be about "the
prostitution of Europe by the Americans," adding that this was a part of his "hate/hate relationship with America. I just had the idea of all them huddled in their mobile homes while Mother Russia rained down on them."
"Flood I" and "Flood II" both use the word "flood" as a metaphor for sex. Eldritch felt that a flood could be something stimulating, adding: "most people
..only get wet under certain circumstances."
He called "
Lucretia My Reflection
"Lucretia My Reflection" is a song by the English rock band the Sisters of Mercy. Released as the third and final single from their second studio album, '' Floodland'', in June 1988, it reached number 20 on the UK Singles Chart.
Overview
The son ...
" his "Welcome on board, Patricia" song, saying that he had always thought of her as a "
Lucretia
According to Roman tradition, Lucretia ( /luːˈkriːʃə/ ''loo-KREE-shə'', Classical Latin: ʊˈkreːtɪ.a died c. 510 BC), anglicized as Lucrece, was a noblewoman in ancient Rome, whose rape by Sextus Tarquinius (Tarquin) and subseq ...
-type person."
"1959" is a partially-autobiographical song, which takes its title from Eldritch's birth year. He thought that the song regards "innocence–inherited as opposed to environmental."
![The mission wayne hussey](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/The_mission_wayne_hussey.jpg)
The
centrepiece
A centrepiece or centerpiece is an important item of a display, usually of a table setting. Centrepieces help set the theme of the decorations and bring extra decorations to the room. A centrepiece also refers to any central or important object ...
of the album, "This Corrosion", goes back to the conflict between Eldritch and his former bandmates, who had formed the Mission. The lyrics of the track are a parody of lyrics in the manner that Hussey especially wrote them, which Eldritch considered to be typically "clichéd" and "meaningless". As a result, Eldritch felt that most of the lyrics "should be thought of in quotation marks. It would be too confusing to print them all."
[Mico, ''Melody Maker'', November 1987] He also noted that "This Corrosion" on the lyrics sheet is capitalised in the style of a song title because "it's the title of somebody else's song," recalling a list of song titles that Hussey kept to himself. Eldritch claimed that Hussey would select the titles that he thought were the best and generate lyrics out of them. Eldritch claimed: "It didn't have to have any meaning, it just had to sound good."
"Driven Like the Snow", similarly to "Nine While Nine" from ''First and Last and Always'', is about Eldritch's former girlfriend Claire Shearsby, even being noted as "Nine While Nine Part 2" by him. He thought of the song as a way to logically explain why their relationship had to fall apart.
Speaking of "Never Land", Eldritch commented that it imagines "the entire population of the earth starting to travel from some indefinable point in space toward the earth at increasing speed. It would take an eternity to reach the earth—by which time you'd be reasonably spiritualised—and even when you reached the destination, you wouldn't actually hit the ground. You'd be going so fast you'd just go through and out the other side, where there is another eternity of nothingness. I just tried to write a song about these impressions."
The lyrics Eldritch spoke of were found on the full 12-minute version of the song, which remained unreleased until it was included on the 2006 reissue of ''Floodland''.
Release and promotion
"This Corrosion" was selected as the
lead single
A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date.
Release s ...
from ''Floodland'', although Eldritch initially had pleaded for "Dominion" to be the lead single.
The song was released on 18 September 1987 through Merciful Release, a subsidiary of WEA operated by Eldritch, being released as a 7-inch, 12-inch,
CD and
cassette
Cassette may refer to:
Technology
* Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback
** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in th ...
; each version contained a different mix of the song. Eldritch originally wanted the long version on the single release, but the record label desired for an edited version instead. The mix of the LP version is similar to that of the 12-inch version, though the version lasts about 45 seconds longer. The cassette version was
mixed by Steinman, and differs from other single versions.
The
B-side of the single was "Torch", which Eldritch produced and played every instrument for. It had been written in 1985 for the scrapped album ''Left on Mission and Revenge'' album. The 12-inch single added Eldritch's version of the Sisterhood song "Colours" (1985), while WEA conceded a budget of over £50,000 for the
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
of "This Corrosion".
[''ME/Sounds'', May 1988] The video was shot at a warehouse in
Wapping
Wapping () is a district in East London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Wapping's position, on the north bank of the River Thames, has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains through its riverside public houses and steps, ...
and directed by Stuart Orme. The Sisters of Mercy wanted to film in Kazakhstan of the Soviet Union, but at the same time, Russian record label
Melodiya
Melodiya ( rus, links=no, Мелодия, t=Melody) is a Russian (formerly Soviet) record label. It was the state-owned major record company of the Soviet Union.
History
Melodiya was established in 1964 as the "All-Union Gramophone Record Firm ...
were in negotiations with the West regarding video rights, and filming there would have botched the negotiations.
''Floodland'' was released in the United Kingdom on 16 November 1987, later receiving a release in the United States on 11 January 1988 through
Elektra Records.
The album had simultaneous releases on
vinyl
Vinyl may refer to:
Chemistry
* Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer
* Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation
* Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry
* Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...
, cassette, and CD. The cassette release included "Torch", the B-side to "This Corrosion",
and the CD release included both "Torch" and "Colours", the latter being another B-side from the single releases for "This Corrosion", as bonus tracks.
Morrison's name was not included in the credits for ''Floodland'', although she was pictured on the sleeve and appeared under her real name of Anne Rainone in the "Thanks" section of the inner sleeve. She downplayed the lack of inclusion in interviews, saying: "if you look at Sisters' records, the names for what people play usually aren't there. Andrew writes the songs so there's no reason for anyone else to be featured. I was well aware of that when the album came out but what I didn't realise was that it would confuse other people. If people haven't seen the press we've done, they don't know I'm in the band."
Eldritch still considered Morrison to be a vital part of the Sisters of Mercy, as she contributed greatly to the band's visual identity by appearing in music videos released for ''Floodland'' and on the album cover.
Eldritch chose not to embark on a tour to promote the album,
[McIntyre, ''Classic Rock'', July 2007, p. 61–62] feeling that it was not made to be played live. He later recalled not having a band ready to accompany him on a tour, which was the real reason why he chose not to tour and instead opted to promote ''Floodland'' through singles, music videos, and television appearances only.
![Petra-5](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Petra-5.JPG)
Following the release of ''Floodland'' in November, a remix of "Dominion" was announced as the second single in December 1987 and released in the last week of February 1988.
A cover version of the
Hot Chocolate
Hot chocolate, also known as hot cocoa or drinking chocolate, is a heated drink consisting of shaved chocolate, melted chocolate or cocoa powder, heated milk or water, and usually a sweetener like whipped cream or marshmallows. Hot chocolate ...
song "
Emma" (1974) was recorded to be released as part of the single.
[Bonner, '']Uncut
Uncut may refer to:
* ''Uncut'' (film), a 1997 Canadian docudrama film by John Greyson about censorship
* ''Uncut'' (magazine), a monthly British magazine with a focus on music, which began publishing in May 1997
* '' BET: Uncut'', a Black Enter ...
'', 2006 The single's other B-side tracks, made from various "Dominion" segments, were prepared shortly before the "Dominion" music video shoot. "Sandstorm" consists of various sampled saxophone and keyboard parts from "Dominion", mixed to a moody short instrumental track, which was used in the opening section of the video. "Untitled" is a slowed-down instrumental excerpt from "Dominion". The CD single for the song contained "Ozymandias", which is "Dominion" played backwards. The video for "Dominion" was filmed during February 1988 in the Jordanian city of
Petra; it was the first ever music video to have been shot in Jordan.
After the commercial success of "This Corrosion", WEA had again conceded a budget of £50,000 and they enlisted director David Hogan, who shot the video in two days after four-and-a-half months of preparation.
Eldritch called the video "''
Lawrence of Arabia
Thomas Edward Lawrence (16 August 1888 – 19 May 1935) was a British archaeologist, army officer, diplomat, and writer who became renowned for his role in the Arab Revolt (1916–1918) and the Sinai and Palestine Campaign (1915–191 ...
'' part two."
The third and final single from the album, a remix of "Lucretia My Reflection", was released on 27 May 1988.
The B-side of the single was "Long Train";
the title references lyrics from "Lucretia My Reflection".
An accompanying music video was filmed by director Peter Sinclair at locations in India, including a cotton mill in
Bombay
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...
.
Eldritch had also considered releasing "1959" as a single at some point; it was later released as a
promotional single
A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...
that aimed for radio play. The song also received a music video that was filmed in India.
Reception
Critical
''Floodland'' was met with mixed reviews from
music critics
Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
. Mark Coleman of ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
'' felt that the album was a step down from the Sisters of Mercy's previous material. He described it as "
Meat Loaf
Michael Lee Aday (born Marvin Lee Aday; September 27, 1947 – January 20, 2022), known professionally as Meat Loaf, was an American rock singer and actor. He was noted for his powerful, wide-ranging voice and theatrical live shows. He is on t ...
joining
the Cure
The Cure are an English rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith has remained the only constant member. The band's ...
for a remake of
Lou /nowiki>">eed/nowiki>'s ''
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
''", adding that the album is "hilarious, sure, but always listenable at the very least". Coleman provided praise, however, for "This Corrosion", calling it a "bona fide toe-tapper of a single."
In ''
The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...
'',
Robert Christgau compared the band's "doldrums" negatively to fellow gothic rock band
Fields of the Nephilim
Fields of the Nephilim are an English gothic rock band formed in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, in 1984. The band's name refers to a Biblical race of angel-human hybrids known as the Nephilim.
Career Early years (1984–1991)
Fields of the Nep ...
, albeit less dumb as well as compensated with "disco" and "proper nouns".
''Floodland'' has since received retrospective praise from music critics, however. Writing for
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
, Chris True heralded the album as "a definite milestone," complimenting its "lush production" and "lyric imagery that is both scary and glorious." He added that the band create "a black soundscape that is majestic and vast" with "Dominion" / "Mother Russia" and that "slower tracks, like 'Flood' and '1959,' are some of the best ethereal sounds goth has to offer, and the downright regal 'This Corrosion' is one of the best songs of the genre."
Sputnikmusic staff member ManosG wrote that "''Floodland'' may not be as dark, influential or focused as the band’s debut but is still an excellent album with an amazing vocal performance by Andrew
ldritch. He also called "Lucretia My Reflection" one of the best songs in the Sisters of Mercy's discography, alongside giving praise to "Dominion / Mother Russia", "1959", "This Corrosion", and "Flood II".
''Floodland'' was later considered an essential gothic rock album by ''Classic Rock'', ''
Consequence
Consequence may refer to:
* Logical consequence, also known as a ''consequence relation'', or ''entailment''
* In operant conditioning, a result of some behavior
* Consequentialism, a theory in philosophy in which the morality of an act is determi ...
'', ''Spectrum Culture'', ''
LA Weekly'', and ''Treble''.
Commercial
''Floodland'' reached number nine on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
. Preorders alone assured the album silver certification on the day of its release, and on 11 March 1988 it was certified gold in the UK by the
British Phonographic Industry
British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with ...
(BPI) for selling 100,000 units.
According to Eldritch, ''Floodland'' recouped the high production costs in 1989.
[Dickson, ''Heartland'', June 1991, p. 46] In Germany, which Eldritch claimed was the band's second largest market behind the UK,
the album entered the
Top 100 albums chart on 14 December 1987 at number 32, remaining on the chart for 20 weeks. In 1993, ''Floodland'' was certified gold in Germany by the
Bundesverband Musikindustrie
The Bundesverband Musikindustrie (English: Federal Music Industry Association), or simply BVMI, represents the music industry in Germany. The association represents the interests of nearly 280 labels and music industry related enterprises, which ...
(BVMI) for sales of 250,000 units.
In the US, the album debuted at number 174 on the
''Billboard'' 200 during the week of 6 February 1988. It went on to peak at number 101, after spending six weeks on the chart, during the week of 12 March 1988.
Track listing
All tracks are written by Andrew Eldritch.
''Floodland'' vinyl track listing
Cassette track listing
CD track listing
2006 reissue bonus tracks
Personnel
Personnel adapted from ''Floodland'' liner notes, except where noted otherwise.
The Sisters of Mercy
[The band members' instruments are not credited in the album's liner notes. Their primary instruments are listed based on the band members' accounts of the album's recording and their ''de facto'' primary roles in the band.]
*
Andrew Eldritch
Andrew Eldritch (born Andrew William Harvey Taylor, 15 May 1959) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He is the frontman and only remaining original member of the Sisters of Mercy, a band that emerged from the British post-punk scene ...
– vocals, composing, keyboards, synthesizers, guitar, bass guitar, drum machine programming
*
Patricia Morrison
Patricia Anne Rainone (born January 14, 1962), better known by her stage name Patricia Morrison, is an American bass guitarist, singer and songwriter. She has worked with Bags, The Gun Club, Fur Bible, The Sisters of Mercy, and the Damned.
Bio ...
– bass guitar, backing vocals
* "
Doktor Avalanche
The Sisters of Mercy is an English rock band, formed in 1980 in Leeds. After achieving early underground fame there, the band had their commercial breakthrough in the mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasin ...
" – drum machine
Technical personnel
*Larry Alexander – production
*Andrew Eldritch – engineering, production
*
Jim Steinman
James Richard Steinman (November 1, 1947 – April 19, 2021) was an American composer, lyricist and record producer. He also worked as an arranger, pianist, and singer. His work included songs in the adult contemporary, rock, dance, pop, mus ...
– production
Additional musicians
[The additional members who took part in the recording sessions are not credited in the album's liner notes. They are listed based on the band members' and producers' accounts of the sessions.]
* Eddie Martinez – guitar
* New York Choral Society – choral vocals
Charts
Certification
*
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
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External links
*
''Floodland''(
Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash (formerly Macromedia Flash and FutureSplash) is a multimedia software platform used for production of animations, rich web applications, desktop applications, mobile apps, mobile games, and embedded web browser video players. Fla ...
) at
Spotify
Spotify (; ) is a proprietary Swedish audio streaming and media services provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. It is one of the largest music streaming service providers, with over 456 million monthly active us ...
(streamed copy where licensed)
*