Fucked Up-David Comes To Life

Fucked Up  

'David Comes to Life'

        So here we go right off the top...Fucked Up are NOT a Hardcore band anymore (Oh Shit I’m in trouble now)… what they are is a band with 6 members whose creative force far outshines any label that can be bestowed on them, and so begins...”David Comes To Life”

         Most of the people that are reading this review will already have had Fucked Up’s story memorized, so I will not be retelling the tale of the over 70 or so different releases we’ve seen from the band in the last ten years, or that a band with the word FUCK in their name can win The Polaris Music Prize (even though they said they made up I’m pretty sure Metric is still pissed), they’re live shows in my opinion are the most aggressively intoxicating events that the world of live music has ever seen or will ever see again, or that their last full length studio record The Chemistry of Common Life was a genre changing record thus giving the band a whole different level of acceptance in the “industry” (even though “they” still can’t get past that small four letter word tucked so neatly inside their name).That’s the past Dude, I’m here to talk about the present “David Comes To Life”

      In the months leading up to this release of David Comes To Life we were deluged with multiple descriptions of the record, everything from it’s a Punk Rock Opera to its “Tommy” with better guitar riffs (O.K. that one is mine), but it really didn’t matter what the Fucked Up camp were leading us to believe, the proof finally emerged last week when we got to here the completed project for ourselves in its entirety for the first time ,the way it’s meant to be heard from start to finish...and I can say as a “Fan” and as a certified “music geek” that David Comes To Life ranks up there with some of the best records ever recorded.

    The record begins with Let Her Rest; a little over 3 minute instrumental that sets the stage for the whole entire record. Through the next 17 tracks you learn the story of David and Veronica...a tale of Love and Lost, how David’s guilt get’s the best of him until he can really know happened to Veronica and comes to terms with Love and himself...we’ll that’s my take on it...now onto more of the record.

        Queen of Hearts is personally my favorite track off of the record...layers of guitars with vocals from both Damian and Madeline Follin (Cults) make this a standout...Next up is Under My Nose, all in all a pretty basic love song, David talks about how great his life is now that he has found Veronica the love of his life...it also has one of the best lines in the record “Syncretism is so natural and they’re experiencing something so actual”. Then it’s The Other Shoe , which features the most infectious lyric on the entire record “We’re dying on the inside” , I had that line stuck in my head for days after hearing it for the first time, and it’s a very good contender for “Earworm” of the decade,  this track also features Toronto vocalist Jennifer Castle.

   As the record progresses we are given the gift of sonic and for that we must give thanks to Mr. 10,000 Marbles himself Mike Haliechuk , he who has created walls of guitars along with Josh and Ben that don’t eradicate the other instruments around them but instead compliment them.  I’ll take a few minutes here to talk about Drummer Jonah Falco….back in April of this year I got to see Fucked Up perform the live score to the 1928 silent film West of Zanzibar -Minus Damian Abraham... I came away from that performance with a completely altered understanding for what Mr.Jo is capable of, he commanded that movie theater as he commands  David comes To Life, the drums are the fortitude of this record, they don’t abandon from their objective…to steer the story through it’s dangerous ride and to escort the listener to the end in one piece. 

   Originally I was going to go through every song on the record, breaking them down note by note, word by word; instead I’m just finish off talking about my favorite other tracks and how important I feel this record will be.

    I don’t know about you but when Ship Of Fools starts I incontrovertibly start bobbing my head up and down…this is just one of those classic Fucked Up songs that just has to be seen and heard live to really appreciate it…can’t wait.  Is Damian actually singing during Inside A Frame? and not to say that what Damian does isn’t “singing” but I’m talking in the same vain as maybe Justin Vernon…who knows what’s next…

     During One More Night I really believe that Fucked Up is unconsciously trying to resurrect the ghosts of Big Country...and I don’t mean that in a negative way…. Jennifer Castle also is a guest vocalist on this track. 

      So we come to the end… Lights Go Up (Featuring Jennifer Castle and Kurt Vile), this is the song that ends David Comes To Life, this is also the song that sends Fucked Up off on another journey….they will defiantly still be producing 7” singles, they will most likely still be annihilating stages all around the world…but one thing is for certain they will never come close to ever topping David Comes To Life 

My Rating….10 Out Of 10

My Suggestion…Record Of The Year

Thank You:Mike, Damian, Jonah, Sandy, Josh ,Ben and David

David Comes To Life  is released June the 7th 2011 on Matador Records

Joe Cornelisse-SSGS