FES – With Regards From Home | Album Review

Originally, FES went under the full moniker of Flat Earth Society before acronymising their name after being contacted by too many people sporting tin foil hats. Hopefully some of them actually stuck around though; this debut LP is math-pop at it’s best.

Released via Small Pond, With Regards From Home comes following a string of EPs and splits from the trio, records of greatness in their own right, but releases that hinted towards something far greater down the line. However, it wouldn’t be too hyperbolic to say that the contents of this full-length exceed expectations.

FES revolve around the juxtaposition of the sweetness of guitar driven pop-rock and the computed intricacies of math-rock delivered via slick, albeit sporadic tempo changes. They may not have been the one’s to pioneer the sound – with acts such as TTNG, Fish Tank and Orchards pushing it into the national conscious of the math-rock scene – but here, FES fully define it. All the unique components that made their sound have been tightened and each contrasting element has been pushed to it’s maximum. But still, their home-cooked approach to the genre has never felt more organic and natural.

With references to the likes of Fresh, Delta Sleep, Tricot, Colour, Martha and the trio of bands aforementioned bountiful, this is a musical honeypot of styles that is abound to be savoured by both those dedicated devotes of UK alt-punk and math-rock alike. Whilst the jangly riffs and pop-punk stomp of opener ‘Chew’ melt into the fluidity of ‘Clarinet’ and summer-scented angularity of ‘Sun Visor’, FES lay bare to their highly intricate sound in a way that’s far from disorientating or overwhelming. In fact, it’s the polar opposite. The fashion in which they intertwine these stereophonically polarising genres is palatable to a disarming agree. It’s akin to a seamless and ideal chemical reaction, one that would spur even the most stone-faced of math-rock aficionados to dance giddily, and in turn, the most excitable fans of guitar-driven pop into contemplative chin-strokers.

It’s absolutely undeniable that the harmonious fusion of styles is the crux that makes this record so brilliant, but what further embellishes it is how it’s used to articulate the lyrical themes present. Thematically and conceptually, With Regards From Home is the vessel that allows frontwoman Pollyanna Holland-Wing to narrate how the once seemingly endless days of youth have come to an end and how their absence has resulted in an adult life wracked with regrets, grief and trauma. It’s a subject that all those navigating a sudden onset of adulthood can relate to, but the way in which FES lyrically detail this is vivid.

Musically romanticising thoughts of Orchards and After Laughter era Paramore at their most idyllic, ‘So So’, is an album highlight in how it explores toxic relationships during the transition from adolescence to adulthood, and in a way comparable to esteemed multi-instrumentalist Natalie Evans, ‘Seethrough’ explores a mind most damaged via the means of rustic acoustics without compromising their math-rock inclined tendencies. The sugar-coated bounce of ‘Black Eye’ and ‘Force Fed’ – a track built around surprisingly merciless riffs – are also highlights in this regard, with the energy and tones within mirroring the emotional intensity present in perfect parallels.

Essentially, With Regards From Home doesn’t rework the math-pop equation, but what it does is perfect the formula, showing those reluctant that the sound is more than just a mismatched curiosity. Powered by intricate experimentation and propelled by the simply impeccable skill, finesse and exposed honesty of Pollyanna, this is an album with almost limitless cross-appeal that harnesses a fluid sound that’s purely organic and hasn’t been artificially designed just to tick boxes. Further more, it’s a new benchmark for what consists as brilliance in the world of math-pop, a genre FES has already pretty much mastered right here, on their very first debut effort.