Fat White Family Album for Some, Not For Others
Fat White Family. Photo Steve Gullick
The new album “Songs for Our Mothers” from the band Fat White Family, is everything, except an album for your mother. Well, it could depend! Maybe if your mother is a sadomasochist, satanist or on heroin, in that case, it could probably work. See for yourself.
This bunch of lunatics wackos start off with an upbeat danceable disco tone almost straight out from the ’80s. With a popping bass, some cheesy keyboards, “Whitest Boy on the Beach” their single, could be what we call a great opening. Though, the irony is pretty strong compared with the rest of the album that has absolutely nothing to do with that kind of vibe.
The second song really puts us in the real mood of the album. “Satisfied” slowly bring us in the backwoods country where serial killers hide their corpses. A perverted and wicked environment with mumbling chaotic singings and deviant guitars.
We keep on turning the wheels of sins with “Love is the Crack”. A song with a fantastic twisted and depraved color. Noisy guitars, pathetic organ keys, it’s slow, broken and mediocre, but in a good way.
“Duce” opens the doors on a probable satanic ritual, somewhere in an obscure temple under the ground. Big and wild drums, with loud choirs that chant some mantras to waking up the dead ones. It’s interesting and definitely brings a touch of originality, but the song itself is way too long!
Next track “Lebensraum” is the kind of song that you put on, just after shooting yourself in the arms. Once again, broken instrumentals, laughable trombones, muttering voices with a slow tempo. A perfect song to be on drugs, though, I’m not…
A little touch of lo-fi on the song “Hits Hits Hits.” A chill out and mellow track to, yet again, smoking drugs with a cheap prostitute in bed. Not a lot to say on this one. Simplistic chord progression, a stonish delayed guitar, minimal drums and a definite lack of originality.
Talking about lack of originality, we start to lose focus and interest as the record goes on. “Tinfoil Deathstar” offers us the same kind of melody as their first song, but with a sinister and distorted approach. A concept song or a lack of ideas? You’ll be the judge.
Fat White Family
We follow the same kind of path for the next two songs. “When the shipman decides” is another slow heroin ballad while “We must learn to Rise” is build in the same style as “Duce”. Some kind of mentally ill choir ritual that last for seven minutes.
We end the album with the closure “Goodbye Goebbels”. A sad and muddy guitars and voice song who give us a feeling of regrets and misery with a pinch of sorrows. A nice ending, with a nice feel, but way too long once again.
In brief, esthetically, “Songs for our Mothers” wins his bet. Fat White Family made us swim in a muddy swamp full of hellish sins, fueled with perverted nightmares and drugs paranoia in a real twisted nature. “Songs for our Mothers” can also be a reminder, on how this world, really is, fucked up and sick. It’s definitely not an album for everyone; some might find it interesting and intriguing, while others could call it bland, boring, without any real significance.
Fat White Family’s new album came out January 22 on Fat Possum Records.
