Album review: FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH – Got Your Six

Eleven Seven Music [Release date 04.09.15]

I think in years to come 2015 will be seen as a pivotal point in the career of FFDP. The band has been headlining arena shows in America for a while, but this year has seen them make the step up to arenas in Europe as well as other continents across the world. So what the band needed to do was to produce an album to cement the transition and establish them in the big league.

Got Your Six does exactly that. This is the sound of a band on a mission where nothing but world domination will do. What they have produced is 11 tracks (or 14 if you get the deluxe version) which take no prisoners but at the same time are destined to become sing-along stadium anthems.

Take the first track to be released from the album for example. ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ is as heavy as a hippo on an eating binge, but with a melody that hooks you from the start and a chorus which compels you to scream along. This is a winning formula that is repeated throughout the album and one that will have you hitting ‘repeat’ time after time.

Ivan Moody again steals the show with a fantastic vocal display ranging from quiet and reflective to full on ‘I’ll rip your f**kin’ head off’ mode within a couple of bars. Of the current crop of upcoming bands, for my money, there is no better frontman. This, coupled with his stagecraft in the live arena, is one of the main reasons that I think the current transition from halls to arenas will become a permanent move.

It’s not all about Mr Moody though as the playing throughout is as subtle as it is brutal. Lead guitarists Jason Hook and Zoltan Bathory play some blistering solos whilst drummer Jeremy Spencer keeps up the relentless pace with ease. The song writing and composition is all about the melodies and harmonies and both shine through. The mark of a good song is one which has you humming and singing along long after the track has finished, all tracks on ‘Got Your Six’ have that effect.

It’s hard to pick highlights when the overall quality is so high but ‘Question Everything’ needs a special mention as this is one of the tracks that encapsulates what FFDP are all about, a great vocal, a quiet intro which gives way to a huge riff, an acoustic mid section and a chorus with a hook so large it could land a whale. Another track of note is ‘Boots And Blood’ which takes no prisoners. This is a brutal track and bludgeons you into submission. When played live this one will cause carnage in the pit!

‘Got Your Six’ is a well balanced album which gets the mix of heaviness and subtlety just right. The final mix is polished with all elements coming through loud and clear. With the accessible but heavy approach I think Five Finger Death Punch have produced an album which will appeal to the long term fan whilst attracting new blood. This combination will help to fill those arenas for some time to come.

*****

Review by David Wilson

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