The drum machine acted as the drum player; Morrison did not contribute to the album despite being a member of the Sisters of Mercy. In contrast to "First and Last and Always", "Floodland" was created in a less conventional way, being pieced together on computers using sequencers. The music incorporates the genres of gothic rock and dark wave, while the lyrical content sees Eldritch cast as the observer of a slowly deteriorating world. Some of the events that inspired certain songs include the Chernobyl disaster, the Cold War, and the band's previous breakup.