Calgary pop-rock enthusiasts Fast Romantics certainly aren’t shy about their love of euphoric pop melodies and tightly wound harmonies which seem to explode outward at the slightest touch. In fact, the band doles out copious amounts of both on their recently released record, Afterlife Blues, a pop-centric collection of heartache, headaches, and moving on. Since their formation in 2008, the band has been treading the labyrinthine backcountry avenues of Canada, with the occasional tour abroad to build on their already considerable fanbase. The band finds themselves intersecting multiple genres without ever feeling tied down to any one aesthetic or rigorous set of musical guidelines; Afterlife Blues feels uplifting, even when it occasionally dips into darker territory. But the band keeps things moving along at a brisk clip, and the album rushes past in a haze of chiming guitars, thumping percussion, and singer Matthew Angus’ soaring vocals.
For their latest single, the band has rolled out “Friends,” a surging pop explosion that leaves a trail of broken strings, cracked drumsticks, and bruised vocal cords in its wake — with the song quickly switching between full rock gallop and slower introspection at a moment’s notice. The band feels at ease in both halves of the song, and with an excess of churning riffs and indelible vocal harmonies, they sell the song as if it were the last thing that they were allowed to play. With a repeated refrain of “No one in the world will ever love you like I do,” the song experiences both the ups and downs of a heated relationship, and the band is merely the conduit for these volatile emotions and memories. If the ragged and fiercely coveted feelings commonly associated with love always sounded so blissful, I doubt that heartache would be the source of much inspiration for anyone.
Beats Per Minute is pleased to share a free download of “Friends,” taken from Fast Romantics’ recent album, Afterlife Blues.
