Fontaines D.C., since the release of their debut album Dogrel, have gone from strength to strength. Acclaimed albums, sold-out tours, and a residency at Manchester Academy for three nights seem like light work for the five-piece. Cementing their place at the forefront of the post-punk revival, all eyes are on them for their next steps. Their new single, ‘I Love You’, the second from their new album Skinty Fia, debuted at London’s Alexandra Palace. It is another example of their trademark gritty sound while advancing a new political voice about struggles with Irish identity.
A song of two halves, the opening ballad has an air of serenity. Yet, below the surface, it paints a twisted picture of love as a responsibility. There is an uncomfortable emphasis on ‘you’ (“I love you, I love you, I told you I do”). This paves the way for an aggressive, lengthy address. Frontman Grian Chatten is almost rapping, with a flow surprisingly echoing the middle verse of Kendrick Lamar’s ‘XXX.’. The lyrics express the subject’s self-loathing, anger, and reckoning with a sense of cultural pride. Chatten described it as “the first overtly political song we’ve written.” The music video sees Chatten take a stroll through a candle-lit church, only to be placed in harsh crimson lighting for the passionate address. This cinematically matches the brooding intensity of the song.
The promise of the first two singles (this and ‘Jackie Down the Line’) suggests that Skinty Fia may be Fontaines D.C.’s best album yet. The range that they are able to create while staying true to their unmistakable sound is remarkable. They have no sign of stopping from their perpetual victory lap.
Skinty Fia is released on the 22nd April via Partisan Records.
