1. Dream: Everything we do is a complete collaborative effort, and this was one of the first songs we wrote together. We initially recorded a basic version of our album at Jake [Hill, guitar/ vocals]’s about a year ago, then made the careful decision to re-record the whole thing in analogue. We knew that this would take time and thought we should release a track to get the ball rolling. Dream happened to be the most succinct track from those sessions. Deservedly, it made it to the final cut.
2. White Crystal Lady: The chorus lyric came first in proceedings and set the tone for what this song would be about: “All you see is your own reflection/ Drawing lines before your eyes.” The tempo changes and erratic structure were used to mirror the ups and downs of someone under the spell of the White Crystal Lady. We also felt the need to blast-beat the fuck out of the end.
3. Better Off Dead: This could easily have been two songs; again, it changes between first and third person in different sections. If the album so far is the journey of someone at different stages of their addiction then this would be the post-traumatic acceptance of one’s own destructive alter ego. Like White Crystal Lady, we felt the need to rock the fuck out at the end.
4. Blind Faith: This could be a song about being brainwashed by organised (and corrupt) religion. Or it could be a song about the relationship between tormentor and their prey. As a nod of the hat to all the perverted uses of ancient Latin language, the outro contains a Latin rhythm.
5. Come with Us: This menacing track, with hints of doomand psychedelia, opens side-B and sets the tempo for the rest of the album. Hopefully Come with Us unveils a different side to the band, and it also features a superb example of Dave [Ferguson, guitar/ vocals] strangling a guitar.
6. Facing the Ruin: We feel Facing the Ruin is the most complete and accurate representation of our style thus far. It contains elements of our main influences, ranging from ’70sprog to grunge. The lyrics came as a response to how the music was making us feel at each step of the way. Hopefully the round trip it takes you on mirrors the thematic cycle of the album. The original cut of Facing the Ruin was a few minutes shorter, and then a revised version added a second reprise to the arrangement. It became the title track after we struggled to agree on the album’s cover art. At the eleventh hour a friend showed us a photo taken on a recent trip to Wales featuring the ruins pictured on the cover. We unanimously agreed that the photo matched the track’s imagery and the following morning it became the artwork.
7. Leaving: I don’t think any of us have any recollection of penning this track. We woke up one morning and had a complete demo of it. Overall we wanted Facing the Ruin to be proper album that you play from side to side as opposed to a collection of singles. This track is the come down, the evening after. We jammed till the tape ran out.
FUCK THE FITZROY DOOM SCENE are launching Facing the Ruin on Friday June 5 at Ding Dong Lounge, with guests Holy Serpent and El Colosso. The album is out now via Bandcamp and vinyl will be available at the launch.
