It has been twelve years since Far released Water and Solutions, unwittingly creating the blueprint for post hardcore music and making lead singer Jonah Matranga the godfather of every sensitive boy with a guitar. Thursday, Biffy Clyro and Funeral for a Friend cite Far as one of their biggest influences and regularly cover their songs at live shows. After a decade apart, Sacramento’s post hardcore pioneers return with their impressive new album, At Night We Live.
The album is dedicated to close friend and bassist of seminal hard rock outfit Deftones, Chi Cheng, who is currently in a semi-conscious state after a near fatal car accident last year.
As soon as Matranga’s menacing whisper introduces the opening track, Deafening, it is obvious that the masters are back with a renewed enthusiasm for the movement they helped create all those years ago. Shawn Lopez’s growling riffs sound just as potent as they did on previous tracks like Bury White and I Like It.
If You Cared Enough is classic Far at their best. The tension builds with Matranga’s bitter sweet vocals until the satisfying breakdown complete with gloriously catchy chorus erupts like a little earthquake. Far have always been great at making heavy music with radio friendly lyrics and it is perfectly executed here.
A pleasant surprise appears in the form of When I Could See. The bass is sparse meaning the song simply relies on minimalist guitars and haunting vocals to create an unnerving nocturnal atmosphere that has been missing from their previous efforts. It is reassuring to know that the band are not afraid to venture into unknown territory and the results are nothing short of breathtaking.
It is clear that Matranga’s previous outfit, Newendoriginal, have had an effect on their new sound as Give Me a Reason and Burns sound like they could easily have been b-sides from their Thriller album. Not that this is a bad thing: In fact, it shows that the quartet have taken their experiences to create a much more diverse record.
Far were once signed to Sony and touring the world alongside Deftones and Incubus, but somewhere along the lines band tensions and major label pressures forced the group apart. Dear Enemy seems to discuss past problems as Jonah declares: “If our words were guns we would be dead and gone. Why do we fight like this, dear enemy?” This is by far one of the strongest tracks on the album and proves that Far have always found a way to appeal to the mosh pit and the mind simultaneously.
The only track that seems to miss the mark is Fight Song, as it displays none of the band’s most endearing characteristics and sounds like diluted emo rock that you are likely to find on Radio One. The drum rhythm is monotonous throughout and the lyrics simply don’t stand up to poetic prowess of their back catalogue.
The title track, At Night We Live, is a dedication to Deftones bassist Chi Cheng and Matranga’s quivering vocals steal the air from a room as he tells himself, “There was no car crash. There was no blood.” The touching honesty of the lyricism is a fitting tribute to their critically ill friend and a tasteful ode to anyone who has ever lost someone they love.
One of Far’s greatest attributes is that they have always been able to effortlessly combine punishing riffs and tender vocals without sounding insincere. Perhaps Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance and every other band that has attempted to imitate their formula over the years should have been paying closer attention because no one does it like the Sacramento based veterans.
The album is equal parts nostalgia for their past releases and snippets of musical ventures each member has worked on since the Far’s initial split back in 2002. All of the aspect that made Water and Solutions so influential are firmly in place but their willingness to tread new ground means that At Night We Live has a lot to offer rock fans that are too young to remember Far from the first time round. Let’s hope Matranga and his reunited band mates bring their brilliant new material to the UK sometime soon.
Categories ,Biffy Clyro, ,Deftones, ,Far, ,Funeral For A Friend, ,Jonah Matranga, ,My Chemical Romance, ,post-rock
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