Genre : Post-punk, Grunge, Indie rock
Released : April 22nd, 2022
Label : Partisan Records
FFO : IDLES, Squid, Just Mustard
Having only released their debut album a mere three years ago, right before the covid pandemic hit the world, Fontaines D.C. have skyrocketed to the top of the indie/alternative rock pyramid with astounding speed; headlining arena shows, appearing on some of the world's biggest festivals, making multiple appearances on mainstream American television and being grammy nominated within only four years of having their music published, and most of that time having been spent during worldwide lockdown.
For some reason, I was half expecting their third offering in such a succinct amount of time to be short of breath and that their sound wouldn't have much more to offer by now.
Well, I'm happy to say this is not the case as "Skinty Fia" explores the more brooding aspect of Fontaines' sound instead of their raw and unfiltered style of post-punk revival.
Although that rough punk attitude is still present, "Skinty Fia" essentially focuses on expressing the feeling of displacement that comes with such a rapid rise to fame, along with the historically inherited cultural and religious prejudice that can still target Irish citizens living in the UK to this day.
Something which the album cover translates into image and along with the album's Gaelic title ("the damnation of the deer", referring to the extinction of the Irish elk partly caused by their encumbering antlers which would often become their own death trap; a result of evolutive maladaptation. But also caused by intensive deforestation and excessive hunting of the species during British occupation), serve as a metaphor for the ghost of history whom to this day, is able to create the feeling of not belonging.
"Skinty Fia" also acts as a sort love/hate letter written to the band's motherland.
On one hand displaying a strong feeling of attachment to their heritage through proud patriotism, but also addressing the many ongoing social issues that still plague the country and cause creative minds to flee it for the well-being of their career, as well as causing the country's youth to feel directionless and discouraged.
Musically speaking, Fontaines have steadily been improving their craft from album to album and "Skinty Fia" offers some of the band's most thoughtful and refined songwriting yet, while dipping their toes and experimenting with different moods and styles in order to escape the risk of becoming too one-dimensional and predictable.
Overall, this might be my favourite release from the Dublin quintet as of today and is most certainly among my favourite "non-heavy" releases this year.
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