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Just when hard rock seemed like it was becoming overly formulaic, along comes Red, a relatively distinctive sounding band that has rapidly developed a strong following. That's partly attributed to their impressively energetic, intense live show—the guitarists can swing their instruments around their bodies in perfect synchronization, though the maneuver once knocked lead singer Michael Barnes in the head. Now after two years of writing, recording, performing, and stitches, Red releases their first album.

End of Silence is good, though how good depends on listener expectations—it's not quite the hardcore effort that some might expect from seeing Red in concert. Sure, Barnes does plenty of screaming, but more often we hear a powerful tenor akin to Reese Roper (Five Iron Frenzy) or Trevor McNevan (Thousand Foot Krutch). And though the guitars are loud and plentiful, strings are used on nearly every track, with piano nearly as prominent. This is more hardcore lite on the order of Cold or Evanescence—single "Breathe Into Me" sounds kindred to "Bring Me to Life"—which is understandable considering that producer Rob Graves is best known for his work with pop artists like Natalie Grant and Joy Williams.

It still makes an intriguing hybrid of intensity and delicacy, fueling the dramatic tension of songs focused on struggles with temptation. In addition to resisting Satan ("Wasting Time") and the self-explanatory "Break Me Down," the nature of temptation is provocatively explored with two separate tracks titled "Already Over"—one succumbs to temptation with a rocking feel, the other embraces Christ in tranquility, yet both use nearly identical worshipful lyrics. Interesting stuff, though overall things get a bit repetitious sonically and thematically. A good start for a band with an impressive sound and great potential, though it's possible that many will ultimately deem Red as either too loud or too soft based on End of Silence.

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