Review Summary: "Heroine" delivers pop-infused, violent anthems for the Anorexic isolationist in all of us.
God. Never in a million years did I think I would be listening to this band as much as I have been over the last few weeks. After giving "Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has A Body Count" a chance and actually enjoying it, I figured the next move to make would be picking up "Heroine", From First To Last's second album. I expected more of the same from the offering before and while I was right I was also dead wrong.
"Heroine" may be catchy, poppy blah, blah, blah but it's also dark and unnerving. Yes, the lyrics are angsty and Sonny Moore sounds like he's been kicked in the nuts one too many times but that doesn't shatter the sheer hostility and grim atmosphere surrounding their second full length. And yes, the singer is supposed to sound like that. I'm growing weary of people who degrade this band for their "angst" but this is a whole new kind of angst. It's not whimsical teenage bull*** as much as it is a cry for help and feeling isolated and alone.
"Afterbirth", the fourth track on the record, is a tribute to this, penned about Moore finding out he was adopted. Wailing "you lied to me" and "anywhere is better than here, away from you" you can feel the distress in his voice as it reaches critical points of emotion. Yes, Pop-Punk / Post-Hardcore bands are notorious for trying to be overly emotional and epic to make-up for the lack of musicianship but the emotion actually fits here instead of sounding like they're trying too hard. The other two stand-out, DEPRESSING, songs are "Waltz Moore" and "Shame Shame". "Waltz Moore" is from the point of view of an Anorexic (a theme that shows up earlier in the album with "World War Me" but that song seems to be more celebratory of the mental illness rather than upsetting) and has bleak lines like "I can't remember, the last time I've seen my own eyes, or the color of my skin, do you know what it's like to feel ugly all the time?". "...And We All Have A Hell" chronicles an individual breaking into a girl's house that he finds attractive, raping her and then killing her when he is finished. You will find that many of the songs have taken a cue from the last song on "Dear Diary", "Ride The Wings Of Pestilence".
Instead of writing about heartache and love From First To Last have focused on a gloom aesthetic instead and try their hardest to not only disturb you lyrically but with the music as well. A more industrial approach has been taken and these noises and sounds will overpower the guitar at times or even replace it on "Waves Goodbye", which shatters into purely industrial noise halfway through, and "The Latest Plague" where it is noticeable in the build up to probably one of the best break downs I have ever heard with Sonny screaming on top of it for the whole measure. Musically, this record has some killer guitar riffs but they are never afraid to substitute a whole part of a track with an unexpected quiet passage using lyrics to support the whole ensemble. As always, drummer Derek Bloom is the most competent and insane part of the act with his rushed, without slop, fills and pummeling double bass. He never fails to impress and is the backbone driving each insidious minor chord change. Matt Good is only present at certain points of the album with his contribution of vocals opting to leave Moore driving each line into your heart like a dagger. Wes Borland's bass playing is nothing short of generic but he keeps a steady rhythm section which is pretty much all "Heroine" needs in the long run.
To put it quite frankly, Sonny Moore is this album. His voice breaking every glass in the vicinity and jerking heart strings fills out everything else quite nicely. Though everything about this is desperate and dripping with despair this is one of the most entertaining records I've had the pleasure to hear. Yeah, yeah, yeah, FFTL is adored by the pseudo hardcore and pop-punk crowds but does that really mean anything when it comes down to the music? Who cares what group of people is listening to this? It's unique and a huge milestone for this band that these other less memorable acts should be taking notes from.
I've read a few different reviews that are equating "Heroine" with the same formula for mainstream success but if you really look at it this record wouldn't be in the mainstream is it hadn't of been for "Dear Diary" two years earlier. The despicable quality of the lyrics and the hostile guitar sounds aren't really geared towards a certain demographic (even with hooks and catchy melody, doesn't MOST, SUCCESSFUL music have that quality?). Who can relate to raping and killing a girl or suffering from Anorexia unless they're actually Anorexic? What brought this into the limelight were teenagers, in love with the previous album, taking the themes and stretching them to fit their angst instead of looking at it from the first person view point of a self-destructive individual that never finds his "Heroine" so to speak (I feel this is a loose concept for the album in general). I think "Heroine" has a lot more to offer than the face value it has been taken at. Why don't you have a listen... but keep an open mind. This isn't just silly teenage drama, this is the darkest of human behavior. Music doesn't have to be technical and insane to be good. Sometimes it just needs to be well written and that's what this is.
