Artist: Faith No More
Album: The Real Thing
Released: 1989
On first listen, it is clear that the main draw to this band is vocalist Mike Patton. He easily has one of the most distinctive voices in rock music, and let's face it, the chorus for Epic would be a lot less... erm... epic if he didn't apply his singing style to it. However, the instrumentation on this record is top banana. You won't find any of James Martin, Bill Gould, Roddy Bottum or Mike Bordin being spoken about in the same vein as the instrumentalists of the world that have become synonymous with their instruments, such as Hendrix or Peart, but damn, they're a tight unit.
For a song that could very easily drag on, their cover of Black Sabbath's War Pigs is one of the highlights. The riff itself is enough to make this song take up permanent residency in my head, and with almost eight minutes at its disposal, the band take the song down every weird and wonderful avenue that they can. Unfortunately, one song that did drag on was Woodpecker From Mars; it's a very well put together tune, but after a few repetitive sections I'm a little thrown. Edge Of The World was a strange and solemn ending, but then again, weird and unconventional is what Faith No More specialised in. Of course, Epic soars like the timeless anthem it is, and Surprise! Your Dead! is a two minute suckerpunch.
The fusion of rap and rock from Faith No More was not a new thing, with bands such as Public Enemy, Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Beastie Boys showing that it could be done. However, Faith No More took the formula and experimented with it further, and without them, a lot of other bands may not have had the courage to do the same. I enjoyed this record, and I'll definitely be checking them out at Donington, the spiritual home of rock.
Rating: 8/10
Recommended songs: Epic, Surprise! You're Dead!, War Pigs
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