{"id":4044,"date":"2020-07-31T10:35:29","date_gmt":"2020-07-31T09:35:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ipamusic.co.uk\/?p=4044"},"modified":"2020-07-31T10:41:28","modified_gmt":"2020-07-31T09:41:28","slug":"fontaines-d-c-tackle-their-difficult-second-album-by-showing-us-their-subtle-side","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipamusic.co.uk\/?p=4044","title":{"rendered":"Fontaines D.C. tackle their ‘difficult’ second album by showing us their subtle side on A Hero’s Death"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

ALBUM REVIEW: Fontaines D.C. – A Hero’s Death (Partisan Records)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Dublin post-punks Fontaines D.C.<\/strong><\/a> arrived fully formed last year with debut album Dogrel, which was critically acclaimed and earned them several end-of-year accolades \u2013 including ours<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The five-piece evoked memories of some of the very best post-punk bands, like Joy Division, The Fall and Public Image Limited. But the question was could they do it all again with their ‘difficult’ second album.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After all, so many bands have failed to live up to expectations after an all-conquering debut \u2013 but I’m delighted to say Fontaines are not one of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Barely a year after Dogrel (reviewed here<\/strong><\/a>), they’re back with the romantically-titled A Hero’s Death<\/strong>. It’s an album that builds on the formula that made the first one so successful, but also takes them in a new direction which shows they’re not one-trick ponies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It kicks off with I Don’t Belong<\/strong>, one of three tracks released as tasters for the album, and wisely it doesn’t offer too much from their tried and tested sound, with off-key vocals and plenty of repetition. The same goes for the dense, atmospheric Televised Mind<\/strong>, with Grian Chatten’s vocals owing more to John Lydon than ever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The third familiar song, the title track, is one of the standout tracks on the record, somehow bleak and stirring at the same time as Chatten repeats \u201clife ain’t always empty\u201d, almost as if he’s trying to convince himself of that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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