Fickle Friends

Brighton-based indie pop band Fickle Friends finally released their debut album ‘You Are Someone Else’ on the 16th of March. The band has certainly gained momentum recently, growing in popularity in all corners the world. Eager fans have been waiting for this album for quite some time now, especially after being teased with EP ‘Glue’ last year.

The album opens with ‘Wake Me Up’. This anthemic tune is full of catchy synth beats and a perfect song to represent the band’s sound. ‘Glue’ is a single that has been a part of my playlist for quite a while now and is undoubtedly a firm party favourite. Each of the songs on this album has an entirely different feel to them and yet they complement each other so perfectly. ‘Swim’ has a slightly more hard-hitting rhythm whilst ‘Rotation’ is more of a synth-fuelled song with summer vibes.

‘Bite’ mixes up your 80s pop sound with modern club-style sounds which makes for a very interesting combination. The imagery created by ‘Hard To Be Myself’ is fascinating – it recreates the whole house party-type atmosphere in both the music itself but also within the lyrics. Following on from ‘Hard To Be Myself’ is ‘Lovesick’ which, despite the cheerful high tempo tune, talks about the far less joyful issue of losing someone you love and this theme is carried on throughout the album in songs such as ‘Heartbroken’.

One of the optimistic songs on the album is ‘Say No More’. This was one of the last singles to be released before signing to Polydor Records and is a band favourite to play live. One of the shortest tracks on the album is ‘In My Head’ and marks the middle of the album. In a livestream the band spoke about how this song was about feeling homesick creating one of the mellowest songs on the album. Immediately following this, the album picks itself right back up again into the intense synth-filled, dynamic album that it is.

Another fairly calm piece from the album is ‘Paris’ – which never fails to impress me with how smooth the sound is. One of my personal favourites from the album is ‘Brooklyn’. This song is one of those where you will find yourself singing it over to yourself without even realising. It has more of a pop sound which normally wouldn’t be my preferred genre however, it’s clear the band have worked hard to find an ideal balance of melodious guitar riffs and simple, yet effective drum beats mixed with their electronic sound.

Allegedly one of the oldest songs on the album, ‘Midnight’ has undergone a fair few adjustments in order to turn it into something the band were all sold on; it’s certainly a valuable addition to the album. The penultimate track ‘She’ is perhaps one of the most unique sounding tracks on the album, however, this most certainly isn’t a negative thing.

Finally, the album closes with ‘Useless’. It’s a reasonably steady song, with fewer synth sounds and far more emphasis on the pure drum and guitar rhythms. Although there are other songs which are possibly catchier and would end the album on a bang a bit more, it is one of the most interesting songs lyrically.

UK October Tour
18 – Bristol, SWX
19 – London, O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire
20 – Cambridge, Junction 1
24 – Glasgow, The Garage
25 – Newcastle, Northumbria Institute
26 – Birmingham, O2 Academy 2
27 – Manchester, Academy 2