After the release of the band's debut studio album, First and Last and Always (1985), members Craig Adams and Wayne Hussey left to form the Mission, causing the dissolution of the Sisters of Mercy.

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.

After the release of the Sisters of Mercy debut studio album First and Last and Always in March 1985, frontman Andrew Eldritch intended for them to record an ABBA cover as a single, and tried to hire Jim Steinman as a producer.

[3] The break-up occurred while the band prepared their second studio album in October 1985, which was going to be titled Left on Mission and Revenge.

[7] Eldritch released the single "Giving Ground" on 20 January 1986 as part of a project under the name the Sisterhood, which features vocals by his musician friend James Ray.

At the end of February 1986, the record label Merciful Release announced that the "forthcoming Andrew Eldritch album which for some months has had the working title Left on Mission and Revenge."

Eldritch did not sing on the album for contractual reasons, though Morrison collaborated with him for the first time, contributing a spoken passage on the track "Jihad".

[9] The EP had been recorded at Fairview Studios with Alan Vega but remained unreleased, with Eldritch instead keeping the idea for when he would reboot the Sisters of Mercy.

[3] Eldritch, who in 1985 first moved to Bramfeld and then to St. Pauli, began to compose a new album while in Hamburg, under the Warner Elektra Atlantic (WEA) label.

[13] Despite hiring her to play bass guitar on the album, Eldritch later claimed that Morrison did not contribute to the songwriting for it, with him saying that it was practically a solo record.

Eldritch insinuated that she suffered from writer's block and was unable to come up with many musical ideas, also adding that he "couldn't even get her to pick up the bass in the first place.

[15] Merciful Release office manager Boyd Steemson also gave confirmation that Morrison's contributions were minimal.

[11] Steinman and Eldritch used Power Station Studios in the city's Manhattan borough, where they worked with engineer Larry Alexander.

They spent time at Strawberry Studios in Stockport before transitioning to The Wool Hall in Bath to finish recording.

[24] In contrast to the Sisters of Mercy's previous album, First and Last and Always, which had been recorded in a conventional way, Floodland was pieced together on a computer that used sequencers to help.

[19] Michael Bonner of Uncut viewed Eldritch as casting himself in a role where he is a "jaded observer, watching cynically as he and the world slouch towards Armageddon," adding that the songs are bonded together by "images of the apocalypse that straddle the gap between the personal and the political.

"[26] Floodland's two-part opening track, "Dominion" / "Mother Russia", was inspired by "Ozymandias" (1818), a Shelley sonnet about a tyrant whose legacy of conquest diminishes as time passes by, from which one line is lifted.

"[27] The lyrics Eldritch spoke of were found on the full 12-minute version of the song, which remained unreleased until it was included on the 2006 reissue of Floodland.

The 12-inch single added Eldritch's version of the Sisterhood song "Colours" (1985), while WEA conceded a budget of over £50,000 for the music video of "This Corrosion".

"[5] Eldritch still considered Morrison to be a vital part of the Sisters of Mercy, as she contributed greatly to the band's visual identity by appearing in music videos released for Floodland and on the album cover.

[37] "Sandstorm" consists of various sampled saxophone and keyboard parts from "Dominion", mixed to a moody short instrumental track, which was used in the opening section of the video.

[38] After the commercial success of "This Corrosion", WEA had again conceded a budget of £50,000 and they enlisted director David Hogan, who shot the video in two days after four-and-a-half months of preparation.

[18] An accompanying music video was filmed by director Peter Sinclair at locations in India, including a cotton mill in Bombay.

Mark Coleman of Rolling Stone felt that the album was a step down from the Sisters of Mercy's previous material.

He described it as "Meat Loaf joining the Cure for a remake of Lou [Reed]'s Berlin", adding that the album is "hilarious, sure, but always listenable at the very least".

Writing for AllMusic, Chris True heralded the album as "a definite milestone", complimenting its "lush production" and "lyric imagery that is both scary and glorious."

He added that the band create "a black soundscape that is majestic and vast" with "Dominion" / "Mother Russia" and that "slower tracks, like 'Flood' and '1959,' are some of the best ethereal sounds goth has to offer, and the downright regal 'This Corrosion' is one of the best songs of the genre.

"[43] Sputnikmusic staff member ManosG wrote that "Floodland may not be as dark, influential or focused as the band’s debut but is still an excellent album with an amazing vocal performance by Andrew [Eldritch]".

He also called "Lucretia My Reflection" one of the best songs in the Sisters of Mercy's discography, alongside giving praise to "Dominion / Mother Russia", "1959", "This Corrosion", and "Flood II".

Preorders alone assured the album silver certification on the day of its release, and on 11 March 1988 it was certified gold in the UK by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for selling 100,000 units.