I saw FFAF live in 2003, when they were supporting Iron Maiden and were becoming popular. I loved their album, Casually Dressed, and thought that they were great live. The music in that first album was, in my view, a different breed of the screamo genre, in that it used the screaming intelligently and conservatively; it always worked extremely well with the music, instead of ruining a good song like so many heavy bands do. This coupled with two great guitarists, a smart bassist and a great singer made them one of my favourite bands. Their sound was edgy and exciting, while at the same time evoking emotion (the whole point of music surely?!). When you listened to this band it sounded like you were listening to the future of the genre, and the future was bright.... In my opinion though, Hours did not stack up and this latest offering sounds like it has been written with a record studio producer looking over their shoulders: "let's make that guitar a little softer"; "do the drums have… more »

I saw FFAF live in 2003, when they were supporting Iron Maiden and were becoming popular. I loved their album, Casually Dressed, and thought that they were great live. The music in that first album was, in my view, a different breed of the screamo genre, in that it used the screaming intelligently and conservatively; it always worked extremely well with the music, instead of ruining a good song like so many heavy bands do. This coupled with two great guitarists, a smart bassist and a great singer made them one of my favourite bands. Their sound was edgy and exciting, while at the same time evoking emotion (the whole point of music surely?!). When you listened to this band it sounded like you were listening to the future of the genre, and the future was bright.... In my opinion though, Hours did not stack up and this latest offering sounds like it has been written with a record studio producer looking over their shoulders: "let's make that guitar a little softer"; "do the drums have to make that much noise?" "People don't really connect to loud shouting in songs"... the list could go on, but at the end of the day the heart and soul of this band's songs have been ripped out and replaced by a commercial sludge. These problems always come when bands become popular; the general public do not like a challenge when they listen to music, they want and instant and easy entertainment, no one wants to think about the music they're listening to anymore, giving the term 'easy-listening' a whole new meaning. What the record companies should remember is that this band became popular with the great music they produced in their first EP and album, their sound was already a good one; it didn't need killing. At the same time, the album on its own is a good one, the songs are catchy and memorable, as I said; great pop, not Funeral For A Friend.