The band, Vinyl Floor, is from Copenhagen, Denmark. They sent me their 2nd album, “Peninsula”, to get reviewed and I had to give this album a listen to twice before writing my thoughts about the album. I was pretty impressed with the album. The album has a mix of rock n’ roll songs and slow ballads. The rock songs have some great guitar riffs and there is some pretty impressive guitar solos too! The songwriting is good. If you dig stuff like Coldplay, you would probably like this album. I was most impressed with the album’s sound quality. The sound quality is pretty amazing. The story behind the album of Utopia and Dystopia, is pretty intriguing stuff. The songs on the album has a lot of heart and you will immediately hear that once the album starts. This band may be from a different country, but once you listen to this album, they don’t sound like from another country. They sound like an American band, for sure!

You should really give these guys a listen and check them out.

The description of the album, “Peninsula”, is under the line below. Thanks for the band, Vinyl Floor, for sending me this album.

Kev

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Dear reader!

Enclosed is the new Peninsula album by Vinyl Floor. The album will be released both digitally and physically on the 20´th of February 2012 by Karmanian Records. It will also be released in Germany, Austria and Switzerland by Divine Records/Broken Silence.

Peninsula is recorded in Sweden in the summer of 2011 and is mastered by Ryan Smith, Sterling Sound, New York.

The Vindla String Quartet – who has played with Forest and Crispian and Nina Persson from The Cardigans – contributed strings on seven songs.

Other Swedish musicians contributed horns and lap steel guitar.

Vinyl Floor hails from Copenhagen, Denmark and Peninsula will be their 2nd album.

Peninsula is a concept album divided into two parts – the well known literary concepts of Utopia and Dystopia. Utopia is the image of perfection where happiness and love reigns. Dystopia being the contrast where depression, sorrow and forfeiture reigns. In the world of philosophy these concepts may occur individually, but as many might agree, the world is never just black and white. Vinyl Floor therefore explores the tension between these two concepts. However, on the album, Utopia and Dystopia are more than just concepts – they also appear as worlds for human beings to reside in.

In the Utopia part you may find dystopian tendencies such as doubt, broken dreams and enmity. In the Dystopia part you may find traces of conscience and regret but also glimpses of hope for a better future. This dynamic amalgamation is the focus of the album and comes to life via the lyrics, moods and artwork.

Speaking of a peninsula, one of its characteristics is the connection to the main land but it´s also part of the foaming sea surrounding it. In the album concept the peninsula is a metaphor for mankind: ’No man is an island’. A man can´t exist without a bond to the surrounding world. A man is defined by his surroundings.

The artwork has been provided with an old fashioned compass which can be placed in many directions. On the surface the compass navigates geographically but the meaning is both objective and subjective. ‘Where am I going?’. ’Where are we going?’.

The first track Frames and Orchids takes off with the natural cycle – birth and bloom/spring. Track six Diverging Paths marks the fall of Utopia and Dystopias emergence from the ashes of Utopia. Track seven Force You Through kicks off Dystopia and unleashes its dark powers. Track twelve Frozen Moon reveals an opening through which the listener can escape Dystopia and go back to Utopia. What is in between all of this is entirely up to the listener.

Web: www.vinylfloor.dk ½ http://www.myspace.com/vinylfloor