Review Summary: A confident, free flowing collection of songs that represents some of the year's strongest alt rock.
That
Final Conversation of Kings is a particularly endearing record shouldn't come to much of a surprise. After all, The Butterfly Effect have quickly developed a reputation for delivering some of most consistent material the Brisbane rock scene has to offer. The band's third record not only continues this trend, but also sees The Butterfly Effect explore a few new musical ventures without drastically altering their traditional sound too much. In essence, it's almost exactly one would expect from a band that has grown and bettered itself with each release.
Final Conversation of Kings opens with its most atypical track. One of the album's more controlled pieces, "Worlds on Fire" opens with a rolling keyboard line reminiscent of a Muse song. Backed by singer Clint Boge's best Matt Bellamy impression, the track builds up into a crescendo of power chords and wailing vocals. A soft trumpet interlude provides a brief intermission before the song repeats that same rousing build-up. Exhibiting The Butterfly Effect's more progressive elements, "Worlds on Fire" is for the most part lacking in terms of pop sensibilities; yet at the same time Boge's cries of
"I didn't ask for this at all" are impossible not to sing along too. With the possible exception of the sickly pop flavour of "Window and the Watcher", the rest of
Final Conversation of Kings falls very much in line with recent dredg and Fair to Midland releases. Dark, heavy, yet strangely relaxing all the same, the album manages to vary itself up without drifting too far from The Butterfly Effect's primary sound. "Rain" and the second half of "Room Without a View" showcase the band's more straightforward, aggressive side, while "Sum of 1" closes the album with almost depressing, wistful textures that maintain an intensity of their own.
Final Conversation of Kings might not eclipse contemporaries such as
Catch Without Arms or
Fables From a Mayfly, but it's an exciting listen all the same. One of the premier rock bands emerging out of Australia over the last few years, alongside Sleep Parade, The Butterfly Effect offers up one of 2008's most engaging records.
Final Conversation of Kings sees the band move further away from their alternative metal roots, embracing a more art rock flavoured sound, with some progressive styling thrown in for good measure. The result is a confident, free flowing collection of songs that represents some of the year's strongest alt rock.
