by Dominic Acito (@mycamgrlromance)
It’s hard to believe it’s been five years since Tropical Fuck Storm have released a full-length studio album considering there have been no shortage of new releases from the band, with three EPs and two full-length live albums.
Since their last full-length release in 2020, the songs of Fairyland Codex have been germinating, and the result is an album crackling with creative energy. On any single track from this collection resides enough lyrical ideas and musical motifs to fuel at least five songs for any other artist. The dense nature of Fairyland Codex makes for an easy album to love, but difficult to pin down exactly why, as each listen unearths discoveries. Fairyland Codex takes the listener on a journey that ebbs and flows through noise rock shredders, emotional ballads, and disco-inspired dance numbers.
The album starts with an explosion of sound with “Irukandji Syndrome,” and thus begins a story that outlines the woes of seafaring life. The infectious melody and lyrics are made buoyant by the seamless interplay between Fiona Kitschin’s kinetic bass and Lauren Hammel’s frenetic drumming, a dynamic that remains throughout the album. As the tale unfolds, what initially began as a narrative of commercial fishing becomes an otherworldly encounter with a giant jellyfish that issues a dire warning. Through this first track, the meaning of the title Fairyland Codex is made clear; this is a collection of mythical stories that forewarn of a planet in decline.
“Goon Show” is the second song and the first single released for Fairland Codex. A strong choice for a single, as the song is immediately engaging with its mesmerizing riffing. The song explores the myths of propaganda. Gareth Liddiard takes the lead, delivering a percussive, syncopated vocal style that is interspersed with harmonized backing from Kitschin and Erica Dunn, in signature TFS fashion.
The force of “Goon Show” then gives way to the tenderness of the third track, “Stepping on a Rake”. It’s a song that would feel at home on any folk record and offers some respite from the chaos of the world, reminding the listener not to worry as “you’ve seen it all a million times before and been just fine.”
Where “Stepping on a Rake” tells the listener not to worry, “Teeth Marche” gives us a means to offset our troubles with its infectious groove. Erica Dunn takes lead vocals throughout this disco-inspired song that warns of the shallow nature of materialism, with chiming guitars and a bassline that calls us to dance.
Fairyland Codex features the most prominent guitars heard yet on a TFS album, and are first on the title track. The acoustic guitars accompanied by brushed drums and soft harmonies add a tenderness to “Fairyland Codex” that is broken and then released with moments of intensity. The song waxes and wanes with lyrical and musical serenity, but the overwhelming feeling of foreboding is solidified with the repetition of “A village in hell is waiting for you.”
TFS are often cited as a band whose sound defies description, though occasionally specific songs can evoke other bands. “Dunning Krueger’s Loser Cruise” can be described as a sinister reincarnation of The B-52’s. However, the watermarks of TFS songwriting resist any comparison, as it’s chock-full of TFS’s signature wordplay and staggered grooves.
“Blood Sport” is lyrically dripping with sarcastic venom and musically resembles a surf rock song. Instead of celebratory beach themes, we are treated with a condemnation of ineffective political posturing beautifully characterized as “Gucci Revolution Anecdotes.”
“Joe Meek Will Inherit the Earth” begins with a percussive sound that evokes the machinery of a clock. The beat of the machine sets the stage for a satisfying entrance of the band. The song never explicitly mentions the murky circumstances surrounding the murder of Violet Shenton by the pioneering music producer Joe Meek. While the title references Meek, the song itself focuses on Shenton as she walks home on that fateful night. Eliciting a sense of disquiet with uneasy and surreal imagery, the narrator explores the anxiety of the evening as a softly hammered Fender Rhodes piano punctuates each verse.
Prominent acoustic guitars and violins set “Bye Bye Snake Eyes” apart from the other songs on this record. It’s a song that evokes nostalgia for a past that is slowly slipping away.
The final track, “Moscovium,” explores the mythology of secret military research. The narrative examines the personal toll it takes on the low-level workers who carry out their orders. The soft narratives are interrupted by exclamations of “Murderers!” The song then builds with energy to end the album in a cacophony of noise.
Fairyland Codex is a tempest of infectious melodies, poignant narratives, and genre-blending songwriting. Greatness exists in the margins, as the lyrics and musicality are lush with gems gathered from extensive exploration. It’s an album that listeners can turn to again and again with an undiminished sense of discovery.