FRANK IERO and The Future Violence (AKA Future Violents) are releasing the follow-up companion EP to 2019’s critically acclaimed full length, Barriers. Heaven is A Place, This Is a Place will be released on January 15th via UNFD!
The EP opens with scorcher “Violence”, which kicks in with a funk-esque riff before launching an attacking onslaught of crashing drum patterns to accompany, before dropping down in volume to couple with Iero’s unmistakable howling vocal in the verse. It’s unmistakably them, but at their absolute finest. The chorus lyric of “Your violence feels like kisses to me, your silence makes it harder to breathe, your distance feels like I’m not enough … I need your touch,” hits a little too close to home during this pandemic and punches the message even further into your gut.
“Sewer Wolf” (the second single from the EP – listen below) is just as scathing, and it’s at this point we realise this is truly a release of two halves (more on that in a minute). These two tracks perfectly encapsulate a seething anger in musical form and it reverberates through my entire body with each listen. I think the group have truly achieved something special here.
And then we encounter the second ‘half’; a more sombre, melancholy tone ensues with the band’s beautiful take on R.E.M.’s haunting “Losing My Religion”. Now, the back story to this is fascinating. Back in 2016, Frank Iero and his guitar-playing brother in law, Evan Nestor, were both involved in a motor vehicle accident over in Australia. After this event, the song started making strange appearances to them, and the song’s message repeated itself as time went on. Recorded at the legendary Maida Vale studios, teaming up with Kayleigh Goldsworthy and Nestor, this strikingly beautiful version came to fruition. It’s true to the original whilst simultaneously bringing their own poignant take; a truly decent cover that holds up wonderfully.
The EP closes out with the almost seven-minute-long masterpiece, “Record Ender”. It perfectly blends the angst and punch of the rest of the record whilst somehow still remaining tender and heartfelt. It’s an excellent juxtaposition of both hope and complete abandon. It’s the perfect bookend closure of the tracks, and as Iero bellows “Maybe we fooled them all, at least I hope we did,” I am still left endlessly enamoured with the man’s creative vision for his musical projects.
Heaven is A Place, This Is a Place is frustratingly short, but it completely does its intended job; short and sweet, a furious kick to the jugular before enveloping you in a warm but still prickly embrace.
I will endlessly support Frank Iero in all of his creative vision, whatever form it may take next time around.
Pre-order Heaven is A Place, This Is a Place here.
