Ed Kowalczyk - The Flood And The Mercy

Here is what I thought of Ed Kowalczyk's new album, “The Flood And The Mercy.” Remember – all scores are out of a possible 10 points.

“The One” - Now this is how I like my rock – unpretentious and kick ass. Well, the beginning may have been a bit pretentious, but I can forgive that. Ed's voice strikes a chord in me. I love the tone and texture of his vocals. Just a top notch rock track. Score: 9

“Seven” - Epic – this track has an epic feel. I loved the vibe, the vocals were haunting, and the music made me interpretive dance all over the place.

Score: 10

“Angels On A Razor” - This one was a bit hard for me to latch onto. The changing rhythms and odd vibe was just a bit too much for me. Score: 5

“Parasite” - My ass. Paging my ass. Has anyone seen my ass? This track just kicked it and I can't find it anywhere. What a scorching rock track! Excellent vocals, brilliant lyrics, and fabulous hard rock rhythms. I could listen to this all day. Score: 10

“All That I Wanted” - A nice enough ballad. It felt like a Staind ballad, but it was fun to listen to and I love the sound of Ed's voice. Score: 6

“Take Me Back” - This is the tale of two songs. One part of this song is an upbeat kind of rock track and the other part is this face shredding frantic rocker. Did the two parts work well together? Unfortunately, no. I don't think I would listen to this song again. Score: 4

“Holy Water Tears” - Let me say this – there is nothing wrong with this track. But there is also noting compelling about it either. It is just there for me. Kind of filler, but a touch better than most filler. Score: 6

“Supernatural Fire” - Just a fun, ballsy rocker. I like the energy, the driving rhythm, and once again Ed's vocals. Score: 9

“Bottle Of Anything” - This song fires on all cylinders. Emotions run high and then Ed hits you with some pared down emotional realness vocals. Its a one-two punch that works very well together. Outstanding – that is what I would call this track. Score: 10

“The Watchman's Lament” - I don't know where Ed keeps gets his inspiration from, but this is a fantastic song. Blazing guitars, a deep groove, and those spectacular vocals. Score: 9

“Cornerstone” - I thought I would love the ballads on this album, but I really haven't. This one comes off preachy which turned me off completely. Ed's voice is pure and the music is lovely, but the lyrics made me roll my eyes. Score: 5

There is a hidden track at the end which is some sitar like instruments over distorted vocals. I have no idea what Ed was saying and I don't care. Now THAT comes off as pretentious.

Average Track Score: 7.6 Would I recommend this to my friends? Duh. Of course! This album is chock full of great tracks.

Escalader,
Jim