There are very few bands in the course of rock history who could do no wrong. FM are one of them. I can lament for days over how much bigger this band should’ve been in their heyday, especially here in the States. At this point, however, why waste my time with that when they’re still cranking out high quality melodic rock albums, and at a freakishly rapid pace at that? Mind you, it was just last year I was raving about their last full length, the aptly titled Old Habits Die Hard. Like clockwork, here I am again, taken aback by the talent and charm of these brilliant Brits on their latest affair, Brotherhood.
For those who read my interview with longtime keyboardist Jem Davis, you’ll recall I noted this album for having a smooth and soulful vibe throughout, more so than any FM release beforehand. In this regard, Brotherhood is a lone wolf of an album, particularly in the scope of the FM canon. Those who prefer the band’s hard rocking side will be quite surprised, but I believe nevertheless satisfied at the masterclass in hooks, melodies, atmosphere, and musicianship throughout. Besides, has Steve Overland EVER sang on a turkey? I think not.
The opening “Do You Mean It” establishes the tone for the remainder of the album, boasting the type of breezy West Coast cool characteristic of Toto or The Doobie Brothers. Not bad for a band of boys from good ol’ England! Overland’s voice oozes with heart and soul, aided by retro sounding backing singers, and an easy rockin’ soundtrack. These yacht rock (that’s right, I said it) leanings are further explored on “Love Comes to All”, “Just Walk Away”, and “Chasing Freedom”: All songs that could be adult contemporary smashes Stateside with the right pivot and push.
There are, of course, the usual FM-isms to balance out these new sonic explorations. Synth-fueled bangers like “Raised on the Wrong Side”, “Time Waits for No One”, and “Because of You” sound straight out of the Indiscreet days, those earworm melodies and sugary digital effects working overtime on the listener’s mind. And as for the guitars, Jim Kirkpatrick steps out on cuts like “Living on the Run” and “The Enemy Within”, giving the band that extra push with those arena-friendly riffs and melodically-minded solos in the vein of Gary Moore, Mick Jones, and so forth.
Upon repeated listens, Brotherhood is an appropriate title for this album in more ways than one. Not only are FM as a musical unit as tightly knit as brothers, but the way these songs tend to be diametrically opposite, yet still mesh well together, soft rockers and hard rockers alike, that’s brotherhood! While Brotherhood is certainly new ground for FM, it’s also far from a stylistic deviation that would turn off long time listeners. The songs smoke, the production is immaculate, and Overland continues to defy age and time with his iconic vocal bombast, still firing on all cylinders. Now that’s fuckin’ mental…are we sure that’s not what FM stands for?
8 out of 10
Label: Frontiers Records
Genre: AOR
For fans of: Bad Company, Thunder, Toto