By combining true to life lyrics and catchy melodies, New Jersey natives The Front Bottoms have been redefining the rock/punk/folk/indie/pop scene since 2007. From their raw, acoustic roots on early albums like “My Grandma vs. Pneumonia” and “I Hate My Friends”, TFB give listeners a brutally honest look at what it’s like to navigate friendship, love, and heartbreak.
They don’t take themselves too seriously, though. On the song “More Than It Hurts You” (from an early unknown LP), lead singer Brian Sella contemplates leaving a party because “everybody here is tripping some new drug, except for me” and is quickly asked “WHY?!”. The laughs continue on the track, “Au Revoir” from their 2013 album, “Talon of the Hawk”, where Sella explains what “Au Revoir” means to a now former lover, who responds by saying “Adios, I bet you think I don’t know what that means.”
The evolution of TFB has been amazing to watch. Their self-titled album saw the addition of more instruments than expected from an average rock band, while “Talon” made the transition to a more classic style of rock music – but not without its own unique style. On their latest album, “Back On Top”, the band strikes a perfect balance between the two.
With a solidified lineup of lead singer Brian Sella, drummer Mat Uychich, bassist and trumpeter Tom Warren, and multi-instrumentalist (keyboard and guitar) Ciaran O’Donnell, the quartet’s production quality has significantly improved.
Tom, Brian, Matt, and Ciaran have outdone themselves with their new album “Back On Top”.
Sella even acknowledges the band’s evolution in the album’s opening track “Motorcycle”. “Most of us are older now, we should know wrong from right,” Sella exclaims. The song has an upbeat tempo while giving a glimpse of the lyrical magic still to come. There’s even an organ in the beginning, only furthering their willingness to do whatever they want and make it work.
Tracks like “Cough It Out” and “Historic Cemetery” channel the band’s acoustic roots – but strike a wonderful blend between their new upbeat tempo. “Cough It Out” presents a narrator infatuated with someone else, which, naturally, comes with its problems. “All the branches on the tree, that we marked our initials… I am delusional with love.”
Fustor for the People 