SCARLET REIGN was formed in 2018 as an internet collaboration between songwriter, producer and sound engineer Matthew Freeman from Boston, MA and dynamic vocalist Gabrielle "Red" Long from Denver, CO. Their debut album, "Anointed," was independently released on November 5, 2021. SCARLET REIGN fuses Rock, Punk-Pop, New Wave and Heavy Metal into a wild fusion.

The disc starts with "Into the Dawn," a song with a fantastic opening riff and some cool guitar work throughout. The solo is excellent, fitting beautifully into the overall tune. Mat Graham really gets into the feel of the song with his tones and tempo for the solos. The vocals are everything from haunted near whispers to melodic phrasing that gets pretty close to belting. The rhythm is really nice, holding up the riff and supporting the vocals well. This is one of the heavier songs on the record and is a great lead off track.

Going the opposite direction, "Lay Me Down" stays mellow. Quiet guitars and some vocal layering that really draws you in. The lower range Red uses is like molasses when sung at this pace. Her voice just oozes the melody, sounding both seductive and ethereal at the same time. The contrast with "Into the Dawn" is incredibly stark. One crushes, the other relaxes you. For a much softer song, this one is actually a bit more complex due to the vocals being layered so much, but it adds so much to the song.

"Where Do I Go" is the interesting song. It gets both a regular and acoustic version. Both are easily recognizable as different versions of the same song, but sound different enough you get two different vibes from the alternate versions. The bass line on the acoustic is lower and slower, or so it seems. The drums in the electric version are low key and actually quite nice. There is no need for power here. The acoustic is even more subdued and a bit eerie. Both versions work well. It's hard to tell which would work better live. Maybe they should play both and let the crowd make that decision.

Another song that shows the melodic side is "Reflections in The Light." Gentle and otherworldly, this uses more acoustic guitar and somber bass without drums. The two different patterns on the guitar really complement each other. The vocals are again beautifully done with layers weaving around themselves and emerging in different places with different tones. The keyboards add an awesome ambiance. That is what I want a ballad to feel like.

"Give In" and "Who You Are" both rock a lot harder. The tunings are lower, and the rhythm section gets to cut loose a little. The guitar work is nice with some killer lead work over the rhythm guitar. It is nice to hear the drummer cut loose a little on these tunes, especially knowing it's Matthew, who also plays all the guitars. One of the most impressive songs on the record is "The Road to Nowhere." This is because the song does a better job of ebbing and flowing between heavy and melodic. This one shows their range better than the other songs in one composition.

The album concludes with a cover of the BANANARAMA song "Cruel Summer." This version is done really well. It does not try to move too far from the original, but definitely sounds like SCARLET REIGN. They made the song their own. It has an almost sludgy feel to it, Red again has a haunted quality to her vocals, blending in with the sludge tones with ease.

SCARLET REIGN is interesting. They are not easy to categorize because they cover a lot of ground with their sound. The variety is amazing. They do it all very well, which is pretty impressive considering this is a debut album. There is something here for everyone. It is unclear if this is just a one-time thing or there are plans to make it a consistent band. Either way, they left their mark on the industry just by making this record. It is good and deserves to be on loop for a bit just so you can catch all the nuance there is on the disc.

If you like some shredding on your guitars, you'll find it here. If you like a subdued ballad, it's here as well. This is record for lovers of a mixture of music.