Fucked Up’s Glass Boys is Solid

Tweet

I’ll start off by throwing all my cards down on the table:

I really fucking love Fucked Up. Black Albino Bones from their album The Chemistry of Common Man is my favorite song of all time. I admire the work they do and how they do it. I love that they embrace the way of the punk movement while still making waves, both critically and in the way of change.

I’ve said this several times, but I will say it again and commit it to the permanence of the internet:
FUCKED UP SHOULD BE AS SYNONYMOUS WITH CANADIAN CULTURE AS MAPLE SYRUP AND FUNNY MONEY.

They make me happy to be Canadian (which isn’t an easy thing to do, if you know me (but that for another time)).

They just recently released their latest album Glass Boys and instead of waiting for the copy from their PR firm for a review, I raced to an HMV, picked it up and blasted it in my car on the way home. They put out two versions of the album and I downloaded the second version (the slow version) on iTunes.

I did not think it would be an easy feat to follow up the predecessor David Comes to Life, but Glass Boys holds its own and delivers anthemic punk rock that is bound to be featured in lots of media this coming year. As previously mentioned, the band released two versions of the album: one with 4 drum tracks referred to as the fast (or regular) version and the other with 2 drum tracks called the slow version.

Essentially, if you listen to both versions, you’ll notice that the fast version is the slow version with more drums filling in the spaces and more drive/punch/pizzazz. But the fact that the band gives us both studio offerings and says “you decide which you want” makes me love Fucked Up more.

Given the nature of the drum recording, on top of the reverb-heavy guitars, the album feels like it belongs in a stadium where it would be poised to deliver subversive lines like “It’s the privilege of mass delusion” (which is sung by none other that Gord Downey on The Art of Patrons).

The one thing that kind of loomed over me while listening to the album’s two versions is that I found myself comparing them constantly to choose which I preferred. I wasn’t and still am not sure whether or not I’d have preferred a copy of the album that featured the decisions for me, but that would just not be the way of Fucked Up.

But I guess you can pick a version of each song to suit your mood. Which is perfect.

That being said, I’d like to start a debate.

I prefer the slow-versions of Paper the House and Echo Boomer.

Stand-out tracks:

(you mean, besides all of them?) The Art of Patrons, Led By Hand, Sun Glass, Paper the House (slow-version), Warm Change.

Glass Boys is out now. Fucked Up will be appearing at Heavy Montreal on August 10 at Parc Jean Drapeau.