Of Mice & Men
's sophomore outing treads common waters (a whole lot of screaming, punishing breakdowns, and staccato guitar riffs), but the California-based metalcore quintet's level of intensity, led in part by the expert crooning of clean man (
Shayley Bourget
) and scream man (former
Attack Attack!
frontman
Austin Carlile
), helps keeps
The Flood
from disappearing into the vast post-hardcore/emo/screamo abyss. Bolstered by a quartet of blistering anthems ("O.C. Loko," "Still Ydg'n," the surprisingly accessible "Purified," and the straightforward nu-metal assault of "Ohioisonfire"),
, despite all of its familiar trappings, manages to breathe (as in forcibly inflate) some new life into the genre. ~ James Christopher Monger