Fontaines D.C.
Romance LP
Fontaines D.C. delivered an absolutely extraordinary album we’ll be talking about a lot for a while. Now and in the future. The Dubliners have outdone themselves in every sense and meaning of the word.
I previously admitted to having been introduced to Fontaines D.C. not that long ago but I don’t remember having this new band obsession for years.
When I started digging into the band’s music and started listening to their older, newer, old, and new work, I already knew the band had a huge potential. Everything was working, from their sound to lyrics, or themes. It was all great. So the question was simple: can they do better with Romance than they did with Skinty Fia released two years ago, in 2022?
Not a question anymore.
The sound varies a lot and never stays the same. From incredible rock passages, and dreamy sequences, to straightforward guitar-led songs.
The album works on many levels. It just makes you feel that this is the stuff you’ll be listening to next year and a decade from now when they’ve already released more new music. Or disbanded.
The album starts with ‘Romance’, a dark take on a love song. It’s slow and heavy, making you feel the burden of it all as Grian painfully slowly sings “maybe romance is a place for me and you.” The first minutes of the album hit you even harder with the panic attack-inspired ‘Starburster’, addressing everyday reality with a flurry of incredible lyrics only your own experience can provide. And things get even darker with ‘Here’s the Thing’, the horror story looming somewhere around but not directly mentioned.
When you get to ‘In the Modern World’, a piece that brings in all the existentialism you can ever get, you already know you’re not listening to ordinary and funky collections of tunes. The song is one of the highlights, an anthem, I’m confident we’ll be singing at every gig despite its heaviness.
There’s depth to the album and the experience of many lived lives. Or just one contemplating the uncertainty of both today and the future.
‘Bug’, a guitar song, covers a story of one personal transformation, while ‘Motorcycle Boy’ focuses on a rebellious nature that’s often associated with motorcycles, as well as a certain level of alienation or misunderstanding. ‘Sundowner’, another highlight, delivers one dreamy sound and vocals, of things that could have been or be but likely never will.
‘Horseness Is The Whatness’ is excellent proof of Chatten’s storytelling capabilities and catching and sharing the mood. Speaking of mood, the next one up, ‘Death Kink’, definitely packs a lot of emotion, not particularly positive ones. Accompanied by punkier sound, a toxic relationship.
Favourite, closes the album and it’s still the banger we’ve had for a while now.
Fontaines D.C. have delivered an incredible album. The sound is next level and so is Grian’s writing. He can provide a lot in such a short space of time song lyrics.
It’s an album that goes from gentle lyrics, slow songs, to exceptionally complex lyrics – yet lyrics that you still understand.
It’s a blend of bleak reality and painful existence. It’s a brilliant masterpiece we’ve been waiting for.
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