Review Summary: A different album by Face to Face, but still worth a listen. Its more alternative than punk, but its still really deep and well crafted.
Face to Face was never the most original band, nor the most talented band. What they made up for in originality or complexity was their emotion, energy and catchiness. Face to Face's first 3 albums were punk rock favorites for their catchy tunes and Trever Keith's identifiable, emotional vocals. Face to Face was one of the few punk rock bands to make it to the major labels before the late 90's pop punk explosion, since most Epitaph and Fat Wreck Chords' bands chose to stay on the indies.
"Disconnected" became a college radio hit, which led to Face to Face being offered a major label record contract. They accepted, and re-released their 2nd album, big Choice, on A&M Records. They then released the commercially successful self titled album in 1996. With singles like "Blind" and "I Won't Lie Down", the band became known through MTV and the radio to punk rockers everywhere. It seemed Face to Face were on the verge of getting as big as The Offspring or Green Day, but like other bands, its really a mystery to why not. Some may point to Face to Face's 4th studio album, Ignorance is Bliss.
Unlike the band's 3 previous albums, Ignorrance is Bliss was not "punk rock" album at all. It lacked the straightfoward catchiness and the punk rock edge that gained Face to Face a devoted following. It related more to alternative rock then anything punk, and some even claim this album is an emo release. Whenever I think of this album, I think of later Husker Du. Its defintley a punk band, but their not playing fastly, only using power chords nor drumming really fast anymore. Instead, they're slowing their music down and are having comparions with alternative rock bands at the time, like Bush and early Radiohead. The sound also has a Faith No More's Album of the Year feel to it. You know? That arid, dark atmosphere with some hopefulness in the music?
As you'd expect, many fans hated this album when it came out. Although it was well receieved by reviewers, many Face to Face fans felt betrayed that their favorite band went from fast, catchy punk rock to slow, melodic "complaint rock." Although musicially it shared similarities with grunge groups, the lyrics are still atypical of Face to Face. It still sounds like the band, but its just that they have matured to a new sound.
Even though the album is very different from earlier releases, it still has some songs that are similar to their prior genre. "Burden", "Heart of Hearts", "I Know what You Are" and even "Prodigal" have similar vocal patterns to their punk rock days, and even the playing is slightly reminiscent of it.
In contrast, some songs are heavy and fairly fast, but don't sound too much like their past records. "Overcome" and "In Harm's Way" contain punk like power chords, but not in a punk rock manner. Also, Trever's vocals are less agressive and seem more relaxed then before. "Maybe Next Time" is an uplifiting, inspirational anthem like their punk rock songs, but except for the chorus, it doesn't resemble those songs much. "(a)pathetic" is a really heavy alternative rock song, possibly the heaviest they've ever written.
The rest of the album is not very similar to Face to Face's earlier work, but it is good, and can hold up on its own. Songs like "Everyone Hates a Know-It-All" and "Nearly Impossible" are perfect examples of Face to Face's new style. It has an emphasis on the singing and lyrics rather than an emphasis on the music, as earlier albums were built around. "The Devil you Know (God is a Man)" and "Run in circle" sound like early prototypes to today's alternative music scene.
Ignorance is Bliss was actually a really good Face to Face album. It turned many older fans off, but many now are llooking back on the album in a positive way. Unfortanetly, Face to Face never attempted to expand on this style ever again (although Trever's solo project is a lot like this). Face to Face went back to their old style with Reactionary in 2000 after the backlash from Ignorance is Bliss. In fact, Face to Face doesn't play a single song from this album live. It seems like they may be ashamed of it, for Trever refuses to play any song at all. But then again, Face to Face is still mainly a punk rock band, and most punkers wouldn't want to stop moshing for an alternative love song I guess.
Ignorance is Bliss was a great album, and although overlooked, was a great album from punk rock veterans Face to Face.
