My Top 100 Albums: #92 - Fontaines D.C., ‘Dogrel’
92.
Fontaines D.C., ‘Dogrel’
Partisan Records, 2019
Take a spoonful of Joy Division and add a splash of James Joyce and you’ll end up with something resembling Dublin post-punk band Fontaines D.C., one of the more explorative and revelatory elements to come out of the music scene of the late 2010s. Formed in 2017, the band has seen a meteoric rise to stardom on the back of an abrasive, cacophonous sound and enigmatic lyricism. Their debut Dogrel is a tribute to the band’s homeland and a declaration of a love for poetry - the album title is a reference to the working-class Irish poetry of the likes of Ogden Nash. Singer and lyricist Grian Chatten evokes Ian Curtis with his understated, monotone delivery, infused with his own undeniable Irish inflection and cadence, and it is Chatten’s vocals which immediately set the band’s work apart from the rest. Setting a fierce, Irish beat poetry over a riotous, repetitive rhythm section, the band navigates both disillusionment and passion with verve. The vocals on Dogrel hiss with rage but never truly feel angry - Chatten is just as likely to sound embittered when singing about stifling dogmatism as he is when singing about embracing and dancing with his lover. The lyrics on this record are ambiguous but potent - the band draw on their poetic influences with a careful determination that demonstrates both attention to detail and an appreciation for texture and rhythm. Both the lyrics and instrumentals on this record are often repetitive, but this generates a catchiness that is so often lost in smug, self-aware art. One listen to the hook from Boys in the Better Land - “If you’re a rockstar, pornstar, superstar, doesn’t matter what you are/Get yourself a good car, get out of here” is enough to have it in your head for hours. The depth of quality in this album is remarkable; indeed, seven of the eleven tracks were released as singles. In fact, it’s difficult to single anything out for praise - every song on the tracklist merits relistening - whether to dive deeper into the lyricism or simply to sing along with the simple, lively choruses.
Hidden Highlight: Dublin City Sky
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