On 'At Their Very Best'

I often find myself wishing to be able to experience great bands in the peak of their creative success. U2 after releasing the Joshua Tree, Oasis in 1996 with What's The Story Morning Glory, or The Police after Ghost In The Machine. Following a band and anticipating their next album release for it to turn out to be some of their best work while watching their popularity grow is the ultimate fan experience. For the great bands that came before us we can only imagine what this was like. I can recall experiencing this phenomenon with two bands: Alexisonfire with their album Otherness and The 1975 with Being Funny In A Foreign Language.

The 1975's first two albums placed themselves as leaders in the new alternative pop-rock area of the early 2010s. These records are filled with dance friendly 80's style guitar riffs and beats with catchy and singable melodies. All of this with experimental pop, jazz, and electronic styles mixed in here and there. They pushed the boundaries of genres at the right times without sacrificing the delivery of widely popular yet exciting hits. I joined the growing fandom after their second album, 2016's I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it (a real mouthful) was released, and saw them on the following tour when I was fifteen. After leaving that show as committed fan I eagerly awaited new music from the band. 

The following two albums proved quite the departure from the band's start. Dubbed the Music For Cars project, A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships (2018) and Notes on a Conditional Form (2020) formed one massive concept album exploring large themes from the impact of modern technology in society and relationships to understanding the human condition. Everything on these two records is unexpected, sonically nuanced, and for the most part foreign to the ideas and sounds on the band's first two records. Listening to A Brief Inquiry and Notes feels like following a wavering stream of consciousness, pulling the listener down into formerly unexamined questions. I think there are a lot of great tracks on these records that speak to Healy and Daniel's strong creative abilities, but after reaching the end of Notes, it felt like I had lost the plot with The 1975. I enjoy concept albums in general, but I wasn't sitting down and really connecting with these records and the songs on them.

What came after Music For Cars was just as unexpected. After exhausting the experimental and concept driven sounds and lyrics, The 1975 recessed to an even more stripped back style than where they began on their first record. 2022's Being Funny In A Foreign Language embraces the listener with guitars, bass, keys, drums, strings, and limited production. Complimenting the simplified sound is arguably the most uncomplicated themes and lyrics that Healy has produced for the band. The result is undeniable. The simple sounds and melodies support emotionally convincing deliveries of lyrics such as "Just tell me you love me, cause that's all I need to hear", "Do you think I have forgotten about you?", and "The only time I feel it might get better is when we are together". These lyrics and performances effortlessly fill every listener with the very basic yet deeply familiar emotions of nostalgia, love, and desire. Unlike on Notes and A Brief Inquiry, there is no need to try to keep up with or understand the concepts presented on Being Funny. Everyone knows exactly where this album is coming from, and what it means on a personal level.

Being Funny In A Foreign Language reminds us that the best, most touching art is that which speaks to very simple emotions that everyone experiences on a deep level. Further, the accompanying tour with the exciting house-style stage and nuanced performances of a decades worth of hits proved that The 1975 have stepped into a new and undeniably exceptional era as a fully matured band. Indeed it has been a real privilege to closely follow a band while they create and perform at their very best. 

About You, Live

Carsen