Album review: Funeral For a Friend - Memory & Humanity

There comes a time with most bands that stand the last of time where they go back to the start and do what they do best. It seems their own record deal with Join Us Records has opened the door for Funeral for a Friend to do such a thing. Once the darlings of the post-hardcore kids, they soon became accepted by the metallers, pop-punk kids and the conventionalists... gaining critical acclaim along the way. What followed was the bold step of THAT concept album that always has to be tackled. Tales Don't Tell Themselves turned out to be a musical success, but it didn't have the FFAF charm of Casually Dressed & Deep In Conversation or Hours, alienating a few of the diehard fans of the Welsh rockers.

So when Memory & Humanity sprang up seemingly out of nowhere, the first single Waterfront Dance Club announced it was back to the drawing board with the raw snarling vocals, heavier riffs and, for the first time since The End of Nothing from Hours, the screaming vocals were welcomed back. Opening track Rules & Games is a tune straight from the off, before a couple of tracks (To Die Like Mouchette and Kicking & Screaming) demonstrating the newer side of FFAF, stronger lyrically and vocally. Constant Illuminations comes straight from vintage Funeral... hard hitting verses and Matt Davies showing all the qualities his voice has to offer. The song also has an accompanying heavy instrumental solo and Ryan Richards chipping in with the heavy vocals. Maybe I Am? Is probably the strongest all round song on the album, and seems an ideal single choice... perfect for radio and the Juneau/History/Into Oblivion of this album.

Other than the rather rubbish slow acoustical introduction and cliché chorus lyrics, You Can't See The Forest For The Wolves is another strong track, then Building is the slow, softer track that breaks up the album well, adding a great balance of sound and providing the tearful, thoughtful lyrics you'd maybe associate with Your Revolution Is A Joke... I really like Building.

Beneath The Burning Tree and Someday The Fire are the loud and upbeat follow-ups, and Waterfront Dance Club is a great foot stomper, and would make for a great circular pit with the massive sound coming from all areas of the band. Charlie Don't Surf is more reserved, and Ghosts sounds very much the ideal Hours track. Constant Resurrections doesn't send the album out with a bang, more like a poetic finale, much has been the way with all previous FFAF albums... they never seem to end strongly!

Verdict: Memory & Humanity is very much FFAF finding their feet again, similar but not quite as good as Hours, and no where near as good as Casually Dressed, which more expresses how good the debut album was rather than how lacking this new effort is. Maybe I Am? Is definitely an instant hit for the FFAF back catalogue. All in all i'm happy with this album, and more importantly, i'm excited for what the future holds for Funeral for a Friend once again.

Liam