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Future of the Left
Travels With Myself and Another
By Cam Lindsay
Mclusky is dead. It happened four years ago, get over it. Future of the Left, however, are alive and well. And to prove it, the Welsh trio have the album that should finally free them of their albatross. With their ace debut, 2007's Curses, FOTL may not have shook off all of the Mclusky-isms (for instance, Andy "Falco" Falkous' grouchy cadence and fuzzbox guitar tone are still driving components), but it was more just a case of the listener moving on than the band. FOTL certainly have with album number two, a strenuous effort loaded with burning melodies as infectious as a ruinous pandemic. In fact, this band are so pop-ridden, the only reason they aren't Jonas-sized is because disdainful lyrics and sludgy, agitated punk still have yet to catch on. Falkous is a menacing and shrewd front-man who spews hostile yet jocular catchphrases like an evangelist does the gospel. Telling us "You Need Satan More Than He Needs You" or depicting his content for "Lapsed Catholics," he's so convincing because of the tempestuous nature of FOTL as such a tight unit. The band are so feral and tight in their execution, which is what makes Travels such an intense pleasure.
How did you form the band after Mclusky?
Falkous: Originally the band was going to be a four-piece, partly to move away explicitly from comparisons to Mclusky. The idea was that I would just play guitar. I really didn't want to sing on stage again. That was not my plan. I was tired of worrying if my voice would hold out for four or five shows in a row. The way I sing, which is quite a generous term, you need to be 100 percent engaged for the whole event. And as enjoyable as it is, it's absolutely exhausting — emotionally and physically. Even to tune it down a notch or two would turn it into a farce. But I conned myself into singing in a band again, because who am I kidding, I'm such a fucking control freak that I couldn't let anyone else sing my words.
Your lyrics are so humorous, almost as if they're written as jokes.
I think sometimes it can be concentrated upon with the best intentions to our detriment in the sense that it becomes a gimmick in the band. I think it's a real shame that a band can't have a sense of humour without it being disseminated in such a way. I've seen reviews that say we're a comedy band, which is just insane to me. (4AD)
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Sonic Youth - The Eternal
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Au Revoir Simone - Still Night, Still Light
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Bachelorette - My Electric Family
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Bachelorette - My Electric Family
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Bill Callahan - Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle
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Black Moth Super Rainbow - Eating Us
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Bricolage - Bricolage
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Chester French - Love The Future
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The Church - Untitled #23
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City Center - City Center
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Clues - Clues
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Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band - Outer South
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The Curious Mystery - Rotting Slowly
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Deerhunter - Rainwater Cassette Exchange
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Doll - Inside the Dollhouse
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Eels - Hombre Lobo: 12 Songs of Desire
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Ex Norwegian - Standby
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Great Bloomers - Speak of Trouble
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Great Northern - Remind Me Where The Light Is
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Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
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Hanne Hukkelberg - Blood From a Stone
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Heat From A DeadStar - Seven Rays Of The Sun
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The High Strung - Ode to the Inverse of the Dude
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Hopewell - Good Good Desperation
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HotKid - Someday Somehow
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The Hundreds and Thousands - The Hundreds and Thousands
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Ida Maria - Fortress ’Round My Heart
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The Intelligence - Fake Surfers
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Jack-O & the Tennessee Tearjerkers - The Disco Outlaw
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Jarvis Cocker - Further Complications
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Jason Lytle - Yours Truly, The Commuter
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Jeffrey Novak - After The Ball
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Jets Overhead - No Nations
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Lee Harvey Osmond - A Quiet Evil
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The Lovely Feathers - Fantasy of the Lot
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The Lovely Feathers - Fantasy of the Lot
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The Lovely Sparrows - Bury the Cynics
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Magik Markers - Balf Quarry
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Marilyn Manson - The High End of Low
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Matt Krefting - I Couldn’t Love You More
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Maximo Park - Quicken the Heart
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Most Serene Republic - …And the Ever Expanding Universe
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The Novaks - Things Fall Apart
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The Paint Movement - Our Eurythmy
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Papa Roach - Metamorphosis
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Paul “Snoflake” Taylor - Share It!
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Pick a Piper - Pick a Piper
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Pilot Speed - Wooden Bones
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Polly Scattergood - Polly Scattergood
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Pony Up! - Stay Gold
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Rubies - Explode From the Center
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Screen Vinyl Image - Interceptors
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The Skeletones Four - Aaaaahhh!!!
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The Soundcarriers - Harmonium
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Sports - The Band
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Still Life Still - Pastel
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Still Life Still - Pastel
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Thee Oh Sees - Help
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Think About Life - Family
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Tragically Hip - We Are the Same
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Various Artists - Songs for Eric
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Various Artists - Not Given Lightly: A Tribute to the Giant Golden Book of New Zealand’s Alternative Music Scene
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Wand - Hard Knox
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The Warlocks - The Mirror Explodes
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White Rabbits - It’s Frightening
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The Wooden Birds - Magnolia
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Wooden Shjips - Dos
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Years - Years
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