Album Review: Funeral For A Friend - Memory and Humanity

This is Funeral For A Friend's forth album and was released this week on Join Us Records (relased on Victory Records in USA and Canada and Roadrunner Records everywhere else).

"Memory and Humanity" is somewhat a return to form for the Welsh boys as the album blasts through the speakers from the start with "Rules and Games" with next track "To Die Like Mouchette" being layered with various riffs and Matt Davies' vocals being as impressive as ever. Current single "Kicking and Screaming" starts off rather bassy but then goes along at an average pace and I think it a bad choice for one of the album's main singles.

"Constant Illuminations" see's the band using metal-like riffs and tracks like "Maybe I Am?" and "You Can't See the Forest for the Wolves" continue the structure of heavy riffs and Davies' harmonies. Whilst "Building" is an acoustic track and is reminscent of the band's "Your Revolution is a Joke", as it goes along at a slow and gentle pace.

"Beneth The Burning Tree" kicks the album back into action, with it's fast tempo. Whilst tracks like "Someday The Fire..." and "Waterfront Dance Club" are your typical FFAF tracks; with near sing-a-long choruses.

"Charlie Don't Surf" is a light, steady paced track which sounds soothing and is one of the better songs on the album. The album dosn't finsh untill the band have one more fast-paced heavy track, "Ghosts" before the closer called "Constant Resurrections" which builds up at a steady pace before a break down that see's the band using electronic elements and then ends with a slow and sombre piano.

On the whole Funeral For A Friend's latest effort isn't bad but then again it isn't great, it's just mediocre and it will please those who wanted the band to return to their "Hours" sound, after last year's concept more mature sounding "Tales Don't Tell Themselves". "Memory and Humanity" is just Funeral For A Friend being their oldselves. It has plenty of heavy tracks with plenty of riffs and songs that will eventually grow on you because this record is a grower.

On first impressions it's just Funeral For A Friend returning to their old sound with the old songs sounding different but on further listen, you can hear underneath the band are improving both in their songwriting and their musicianship. Like I've already said this album will draw back in old fans and will please those who were unsure of the band's direction. However do the band now dare to attempt to change it's direction in sound or do they just stay in a safe place?