‘Magnetic’ is the latest single from Friendly Fires and is full of airy synths and smooth drums, with one eye in the band’s rearview mirror as they step forward into a new era.
It has been seventeen years since Friendly Fires’ Mercury nominated, self-titled, debut album. Since then, the trio released another three albums, all to critical acclaim. However, their last album ‘Offline’, was seven years ago, to which the group initiated a radio silence. Seven years later, the world looks and even sounds a lot different in many respects, however, with their newest return, the now duo, composed of Ed Mcfarlane and Edd Gibson, sound as if we have always been in 2009.
Debuting their newest single entitled ‘Magnetic’, Friendly Fires take a retrospective view on their hiatus, accompanied by airy synths and smooth underlying drums, with the record mixed by James Dring (Jamie T, Gorrillaz). The group let the track breathe, instead of trying to grab you with a more forceful sound, instead driving you to the humanity of what is in front of you lyrically. This truly feels like a familiar, yet boundary pushing accomplishment for the St Albans native band, with member Ed Mcfarlane abiding by this, stating that the intention of creating a more revealing connection with the listener “feels like a huge leap of faith for us”. It is a leap of faith in many respects, as much as we are aware of this iconic, yet teetering on nostalgic sound, this feels like a rebirth or a change in course for what the name Friendly Fires stands for.
The duo are now amping up for their first album of the decade, with a confirmed show at the intimate Moth club, as they prepare to showcase their most ambitious and humane blends yet. Going off this newest single, we can only expect grand, sweeping choruses, amidst the vulnerability one must hold after not releasing art in such a long time. Friendly Fires’ long awaited, brand new album ‘Dig Deeper’ arrives on January 15th through LAB records.
Listen to ‘Magnetic‘ here:
Discover more from Clunk Magazine
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
You must be logged in to post a comment.