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Rating: The last two releases from the Welsh band Funeral For A Friend, which were not particularly exceptional in quality, led me to revisit their first LP, "Casually Dressed And Deep In Conversation", an album considered by many to be their masterpiece (to which I would personally add the subsequent stylistically different, "Hours").
In 2003, their recipe was simple: hardcore + pop punk + melodic rock + emocore. Although this type of albums has been in abundance in recent years (to the detriment of novelty and quality of the offering), they distinguished themselves from a flat market with twelve very good tracks that highlight the group's technique. An above-average singer, capable of effortlessly transitioning from screams to melodies in a sweet clean, a lively, energetic, angry (when needed), and varied melodic section, and a respectable rhythm section allowed this "Casually Dressed And Deep In Conversation" to launch the group into orbit.
There are several pivotal moments in this work. The opening track "Rookie Of The Year" has the ability to immediately get stuck in your head thanks to its structures that are now heavy, now sweet and airy, but never overly complex to assimilate.
The same can be said for the much more aggressive "Bullet Theory" (which uses a clean chorus to win over the listener), the beautiful and ever-changing (in structure) "Juneau", "Escape Artists Never Die", and "Your Revolution Is A Joke", entirely dedicated to Matt Davies' voice, which is expressed here in all its grace with a very touching and incisive clean interpretation.
It's important to note that other tracks also present a more than high quality, and the selection I made was purely dictated by subjectivity.
In summary: good technique from the musicians; tracks that are at times intense, at times poignant, at times angry, but always easily assimilable; well-crafted and written lyrics: with these characteristics, Funeral For A Friend delivers a more than good emocore album, where they do not invent anything new (to be clear) but distinguish themselves from the multitude for their personality, taste, and style. The change of genre in subsequent albums denotes, if nothing else, maturity in the band, a desire to break away from a now worn-out genre, venturing, album by album, into alternative rock that unfortunately can only be considered valid up to "Hours", but then gets lost becoming excessively verbose, full of clichés, sugary, and falsely "heavy".
It's a pity, therefore, for the later albums. In the meantime, however, let's enjoy the work presented here, to which I don't give a perfect score only because, as mentioned, in the end, it doesn't introduce anything new (and perhaps contains a couple of lapses in tone), but it comfortably stands as one of the best albums of its genre.
Tracklist and Lyrics
02 Bullet Theory (03:52)
Who shot the bullet
That killed the air tonight
Without a thought, without a reason
Take a gun called hate
Up against your heart
And pull the trigger
Take a gun called hate
Up against your heart
And pull the trigger
It's over, it's only over
It's only over when we say
The smoke and the mirrors
The lies that wind your tongue
Is this oppression what we wanted or what we needed?
As we function on impatience
And our patience is wearing thin
And live a lie that will destroy us all
It's over, it's only over
It's only over when we say
It's over, it's only over
It's only over when we say
Back and to the left
Back and to the left
Back and to the left come on
And shoot motherfucker
You like this baby?
You like this baby?
You like this baby?
Just dance a little longer
It's over, it's only over
It's only over when we say
It's over, it's only over
It's only over when we say
03 Juneau (03:37)
Tied to the testing of wills, when my heart breaks and spills
Left to the sight of the sky, in your arms I'm defined
Thrown to the wolves in the minds of your enemies
(minds of your enemies)
And I'm stone in the eyes of your foolishness
Well if this is what I'm meant for, no longer interesting
Fall forward to even the score, just a thought to you
Tied to the testing of wills, when my heart breaks and spills
Left to the sight of the sky, in your arms I'm defined
We're thrown to the wolves in the minds of your enemies
(minds of your enemies)
And I'm stone in the eyes of your foolishness
And I'm nothing more than a line in your book
yeah I'm nothin more within a line in your book
yeah I'm nothin more than a line in your book (x2)
Well if this is what I'm meant for, no longer interesting
Fall forward to even the score
Just a thought to you
(just a thought to you)x2
Yeah I'm nothin more, yeah I'm nothin more than a line in your book
Yeah I'm nothin more than a line in your book
04 Bend Your Arms to Look Like Wings (04:20)
As the sun sets
On battlefields
I hope you can save me
I hope you can save our wounded hearts
Distance makes my heart seem colder
Distance makes my heart seem older
Just enough to cut the air from your lungs
(from your lungs)
As the sun sets (we push and pull apart)
On battlefields (enough for this to end)
I hope your can save me (from ourselves)
I hope you can save us from ourselves
Denial in the arms of our saviours
And my heart is torn to pieces
Just enough to cut the air from your lungs
(from your lungs)
As the sun sets
On battlefields
I hope you can save me
I hope you can save our wounded hearts
And paper cuts and bloody hands
In the middle, they would meet
And paper cuts and bloody hands
In the middle, they would meet
05 Escape Artists Never Die (05:18)
The red poison of your lips
The red poison of your eyes
Is where I kissed the blood from,
Just that corner of your mouth
where I can see the white of your smile.
Up to my neck
When I’m breathing without you,
without you
Up to my eyes
And I’m seeing without you,
without you
We’ll start a fire,
And burn some bridges
We'll make it out of here tonight (2x)
We need some leverage
We can’t seem to open up
The locks are far too tight
And the chains are far too strong,
far too strong.
Up to my eyes
And I’m seeing without you,
without you
Up to my heart
When I’m bleeding without you,
without you.
We’ll start a fire,
And burn some bridges
We'll make it out of here tonight (2x)
Please someone help me
I’m dying here in front of you (2x)
With a hundred thousands lights
Timing as everything will
With a hundred thousand lights
Timing, timing is everything to me
Please someone help me
I’m dying here in front of you
Please someone help me
I’m dying here in front of you.
It’s everything
It’s everything
Timing is everything. It’s everything.
06 Storytelling (03:34)
You say it's not going to work out
Why do you have to tell me now
Is there a difference in anything
you've said or done
Or is it just the way we've been pretending
I'm leaving (x2)
Do me a favour don't even think of me now
Just when you thought it was over It had only just begun (X2)
I'm not going to let this tear me apart
She's not my only reason
he's not my only reason she said
You're a weakness to me
You should have sent me a note
or wrote me a letter
I'm leaving (x2)
Do me a favour don't even think of me now
Just when you thought this was over it had only just begun.(x2)
I wish it was how I planned Everthing will work out (x2)
You said I hated you if only that was true(x2)
You should have said that he'd be happy now (x2)
I should have said that we'd be happy now (x3)
I wish it was how we planned (x3)
08 She Drove Me to Daytime Television (03:35)
Can't beat the best ones
A little closer maybe a bit too close
You function you turn out
A flawless performance
Turn your camera away from me
Spill your guts in 8mm
Put your focus where your mouth is
You're the only one who's fading here
Such holidays in the sun don't come without sacrifices
You know it makes more sense
Such holidays in the sun don't come without sacrifices
You know it makes more sense
I like the way you cry
Break my heart and break my hands and let me down
I want to snap your neck in two
And leave you dead, so dead
Turn your camera away from me
Spill your guts in 8mm
Put your focus where your mouth is
You're the only one who's fading here
Such holidays in the sun don't come without sacrifices
You know it makes more sense
Such holidays in the sun don't come without sacrifices
You know it makes more sense
On and on and on and on and on
On and on and on and on and on
On and on and on and on and on
On and on and on and on and on
On and on and on and on and on
Go!
09 Red Is the New Black (05:14)
Can't pretend that you're nothing special
You've got to look at all of your options
You can't decide what to go for
When it's all about trust
It's all about trust
You see yourself on the TV
You read your magazines
You can't explain how it's come to be this
Stop and think...
When it's all about trust
It's all about trust
Go!
This coverage, your centre spread
Your neon light daydream will shatter and break
And if you think I'm thinking of your value here
You're the one
You're the one who's losing control
This eventual stop, this
Break in the mould
I scream down this hotline
Just to feel something
[x2]
This situation isn't getting any better
I see that look in your eyes (the look in your eyes)
You want to see a pretty face?
There isn't anything wrong with giving up
And for what it's worth
I still hate you
This eventual stop, this
Break in the mould
I scream down this hotline
Just to feel something
[x2]
Just to feel something [x4]
Something
Just to feel something
[x4]
This situation isn't getting any better
I see that look (I see that look in your eyes)
[x3]
This situation is... is all fucked
10 Your Revolution Is a Joke (02:44)
They stand to fight for nothing.
They show how stupid we've become,
as fortune favours only
those who care too much to see.
It will never be ok,
some will say.
We stand to fight for nothing.
So close your eyes and stay away.
Don't believe their headlines.
They poison our minds
every day.
It will never be the same,
the purpose buried every day.
And lies that lead you
to the grave,
some will say.
And you will never be ok,
as some will say.
The purpose buried every day,
as some will say.
Lies that lead you to the grave,
as some will say.
Your revolution
is a joke,
as I will say.
11 Waking Up (03:59)
Is a lie just the truth
Uncovered and relinquished
A passion for all young fools
Is a lie just the truth
A question left unanswered
To feed the failure of our choices
And in my hands our blood recovered
And for our faith we're undeserved
And in my hands our blood recovered
And in your faith completely
Do we wait all this time
And follow blindly hating
Killing all that we survey
Must we hate all this time
And let our anger lead us
Lead us to our bitter end
Your wasting our time (turn the lights out when you leave)
When everything's said and done
We're dead and buried
And will this never end
I'm tired of all this walking
And if this never ends
I'll walk until my feet are bleeding
12 Novella (05:49)
Wasting time it's over and ended
Wasting time, we deserve
Hold that line, they ask us in safety
Hold that line, when we talk
I can see the headlights and pavements
My legs can't carry me that far,
And if this distance isn't enough they'll cry
Another river to see you drown
Faceless lies, it's easy to speak when
Every word is your own
Selfish eyes look onward in protest as we
Tear down their disguise
(I can see the headlights)
I can see the headlights and pavements
My legs can't carry me that far,
And if this distance isn't enough they'll cry
Another river to see you drown
I can see the headlights and pavements
My legs can't carry me that far,
And if this distance isn't enough they'll cry
Another river to see you drown
Your days were golden
Days were golden
While we bled...
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