Fear Before the March of Flames: Possibly the most original and interesting band name I've ever heard in my life.
[FBTMOF is how I'll refer to the band to prevent swelling of my hand (aka "sausage fingers")]
Hardcore music has come a pretty long way. Every city seems to have one hardcore band, but few of them are good. There's even a hardcore band in my city, "954 Hardcore" is their name (954 is my area code). Very little of these bands actually make it big in the industry, some do not deserve it, a la Hawthorne Heights. Or, a la Atreyu. The point of all of this, is that good hardcore music is hard to come by. FBTMOF does not have that huge of a fan-base, I've never even seen a music video from them, they have not made it BIG as the others have. It truly is a shame that they deserve more credit then they recieve.
Art Damage is FBTMOF's second album after they released "Odd How People Shake", which was also a great album (review coming soon :P). Anyway, the band are a four piece from Denver. Currently, they are signed on to Equal Vision and both of their albums were released off of EV. But I'm sure that none of this interests you so let me start talking about the actual album.
What I like more about Art Damage than anything would have to be the mix of good instrumentation with the great screaming. The guitar riffs are similar to something you would hear from Fall Of Troy, but mildly different. The music is pure chaos, but it's chaos with a purpose. But don't let me sound like the head vampire from "Blade 2". I mean, the chaos does have a purpose, but nothing out of the ordinary. Basically what I'm trying to say is that even through all of the maddness, you can still hear the melodies. It's not so crazy to the point that you start thinking that maybe it's not music. Or it gets there and quickly gets back to the rhythm of the song. This transition is really an amazing thing for the music, and sounds great.
The lyrics that FBTMOF produce are also pretty good, that is if you can hear them over the yelling. Here is a snippet from the song "The State of Texas vs. Fear Before", "Oh yeah. Thank God. I could use a companion.
To hell or bust. I could use a companion. They haven’t found her body, but they’re onto me. I’m sorry to drag you in, but I had no choice. I said I was sorry, so stop crying!" This track is obviously about murder, which shows that the band takes note on present issues. I know murder has been going on eternally, but "her" body shows that he killed a female, which I hear is popular nowadays. Another track that proves this is "Hey Kid, I'm A Computer, Stop All The Downloading." I don't need to give you lyrics for that one because you could see what it's about from the title.
Overall, I think that Art Damage is a step in the right direction for FBTMOF. The songs are all wildly amusing and they don’t ever really get old. I know all music gets old but I’ve been listening to this since it came out in September, and I could listen to it through completely with out touching my computer. I would say that FBTMOF are a good band to get into if you like post-hardcore. This album is recommended for fans of… Fall Of Troy, the Blood Brothers, and Remembering Never. I feel that if you have anything to do with those bands, you will find something to like in Art Damage.
- I didn’t rate this a five because it’s not a “Classic”. I also didn’t list the faults in the album because there were none.
PPS: If you neg me because you disagree with my rating, then I’ll kick you in the jaw.
-------beyondtheblueprint
