Funeral for a Friend - Chapter & Verse

2015 release from the British Hardcore outfit. CHAPTER & VERSE is the band's seventh full-length record and a natural follow-on from the confidence and conviction displayed on CONDUIT. Recorded in two weeks with Lewis Johns (Gnarwolves, Goodtime Boys), CHAPTER & VERSE is a classic Funeral for a Friend effort in the spectacular way it melds gruff attitude with melodic choruses, but it also happens to be one of the most sonically diverse records the band has ever made. Flitting frantically between relentless blast beats and heavy, discordant riffs to the kind of guitar lines you would tend to expect from Midwestern bands like Sunny Day Real Estate, CHAPTER & VERSE is yet another statement that says Funeral for a Friend is not a band that can be placed in a box as easily as some would assume. Opening with vocalist Matthew Davies-Kreye's personalized off the hinges screaming, one of CHAPTER & VERSE's defining features is it's unapologetically political lyrical content. From wealth inequality to feminism, the lyrics are a far cry from the band's early material and display a sense of growth that can only come from experience. A self-assured and cohesive step on from CONDUIT, CHAPTER & VERSE is one of the most hard-hitting albums in Funeral for a Friend's catalog. It is a raw and energetic effort that propels the band to a whole new level, whilst simultaneously raising the bar for everyone else.