Spencer Park Music [Release date 28.07.23]

The Fierce and The Dead have been working on this album over the past five years. It also marks a major change to the band’s sound, lead  vocals from bassist Kevin Feazey (Blur’s Damon Albarn is the closet comparison). The Fierce and the Dead’s line-up is completed by Matt Stevens (guitar, keys), Steve Cleaton (guitar), and Stuart Marshall (drums, percussion).

Kevin Feazey says that the album “…really digs deep into where we come from musically and sets up the path ahead, we’ve always found ways to do things differently…adding vocals didn’t seem like a dramatic step, but something that these pieces would benefit from, it felt obvious to us.”

The Fierce & The Dead certainly engage and demand the listener’s attention from the off as ‘The Start’ ably demonstrates. Just make sure you have your volume control to hand!

‘Shake the Jar’ is a bass driven groove machine. Bit of Queens of the Stone Age on the guitars, eerie harmony vocals and a hook filled chorus makes for a highly enjoyable tune.

‘Golden Thread’ was one of the songs released ahead of the album. A wise choice given its instant appeal – like a metal version of Porcupine Tree. ‘Photogenic Love’ was another song released as a taster from the album and the song really has crossover appeal. Enough to satisfy the band’s existing fans as well as anyone who likes a bit of 90s flavoured indie rock. Hearing Kevin Feazey’s vocals on this, and indeed the whole album, you do wonder why it took so long to unleash this side of his musical talent.

The band’s love of atmospherics is highlighted on ‘Non-Player’. The drums/percussion melding seamlessly into the gentle guitar passages. The sax break adds to the other worldly feel of the song.

‘Nostalgia Now’ with its mix of piano, vocals and seriously sludgy guitar sounds, is a thing of aural beauty to finish the album. Many bands and artists proclaim to be progressive artists, yet often recycle the same musical ideas. However, The Fierce and The Dead define progressive as this album is so different from what they have done before, yet still has the basis of the band’s sound and is not to radical to alienate their fan base.

This album is their ‘OK Computer’, one that is sure to stand the test of time and give the listener hours of listening pleasure.

The Fierce & The Dead could quite possibly have produced their finest album to date and certainly one that will expand their fan base even further. ****

Review by Jason Ritchie

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Power Plays w/c 9 December 2024

In this sequence we play ‘The Best of 2024′ GRTR! reviewer selections

Featured Albums w/c 9 December 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2024 (Singer Songwriter)

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