Album Reviews

Yes, we were all sorry when Faith No More called it a day in the late nineties. And yes, we were all very excited when they started playing shows again in 2009. Are we equally excited about their new album “Sol Invictus”? Yeah, kinda. Of course it’s not fair to expect another album as good as “The Real Thing” or “Angel Dust”, but admit it… secretly that’s exactly what we were all hoping for. Which is probably why I was disappointed by “Sol Invictus” at first.

But if you go in listening to Faith No More’s new album as just that… a new Faith No More album… well, then you’ll find plenty to enjoy. Voice contortionist Mike Patton still sounds as pissed off as ever when he’s ranting against authority figures (“Superhero”) or people who go to a Target store at 4am (“Black Friday”). Meanwhile the rest of the band still love to pull your leg. Whenever you think a song will go a certain way, they go the other. Throughout the album they’ll go from proggy, keyboard-laden cuts like “Matador” to guitar lines that wouldn’t look out of place in your average spaghetti western (“Cone Of Shame”) and somehow manage to cover everything in between as well.

Sounds tiring, yet this is a surprisingly cohesive album written. At least as cohesive as this eclectic bunch will get. Robin Thicke might have a song called “Blurred Lines”, these guys simply do it. They’ve been blurring the lines ever since they first started out. Which is how come it’s no surprise at all to hear Patton go from crooning about his breakfast (“Sunny Side Up”) to full-on metal mode in the next song (“Rise Of The Fall”).

“Sol Invictus” may not sound as pioneering as Faith No More’s earlier work. It might not even be as memorable as some of the band’s previous albums. Then again, Faith No More’s albums always take some time to really sink in so I guess only time will tell. But it’s still a motherfucker!