Gallows have received a lot of press attention over the past couple of years thanks to front man Frank Carter’s outspoken manner and their exciting live shows. They have gone from a small independent band from Hertfordshire to selling out live tours, topping the Cool list of their much loathed NME magazine and Carter tattooing himself on stage. After signing a £1 million record deal with Warner Bros. it is fair to say Gallows have now hit the big time.

One might have expected this sophomore album to be more mainstream than their debut Orchestra of Wolves, with the pressure of appealing to new audiences as well as their existing fan base. However in Grey Britain they have done the complete opposite. The music is heavier, the lyrics darker, in fact it can be quite a difficult listen first time round. Grey Britain focuses on the gloomy state of Britain at the moment, but while the lyrics may be bleak they form an amazing conceptual album and there are many sing along tracks which are sure to go down well in the live shows.

‘The Riverbank’ forms a suitably dramatic opening to the CD, with a minute and a half of menacing build up before Carter takes to the microphone with the words: “Set light to the flag we used to fly, it can’t help us now, we are ready to die.”

This surprising opening blends effortlessly into ‘London is the Reason’, one of the best tracks on the album with scream along lyrics. Similarly, ‘Leeches’ is sure to provoke a lively response at the live shows. Its frantic percussion and catchy chants make it one of the better songs on Grey Britain.

The standout track is the lead single, ‘The Vulture (Acts 1 and 2)’ in which the band escapes from their usual shouting and heavy percussion to create their first acoustic track. Yet while the guitar starts off gently and Carter actually sings, the lyrics are anything but mellow. Carter himself has described it as ‘grim as fuck’ and there is no contesting that.

While this album will not appeal to everyone, existing fans are sure to love it and it may even win them a few new ones too.