FUN. are a band that have a lot to live up to. Their debut effort ‘Aim & Ignite‘ is highly regarded and one of the best releases of 2009, so it was always going to be interesting to see how the band would approach that difficult second album.
Thankfully (if you had any doubt), ‘Some Nights’ goes toe to toe with ‘Aim & Ignite‘ in every way possible, and in some cases even surpasses it. From start to finish, ‘Some Nights’ is an absolute triumph – it’s an album that’s representative of a band thriving on creativity, but they never let that creativity compromise their sound or overload the senses.
Opening things up with the huge ‘Some Nights’, you can immediately tell that FUN. have rounded off their sound. Everything sounds beefier – the production is loud without being overbearing – and though there’s more going on, you’re never distracted.
‘Carry On‘ is easily the best song on the album. It retains the positive characteristics of the opener and just gets better as it builds and introduces more instruments. Despite that, it’s ‘Why Am I The One’ that provides the true spine tingling moment of the album, climaxing with an a capella treat that will leave you with a massive smile on your face.
To put it simply, FUN. have done it again. They’ve well and truly set the bar and do not be surprised if you see ‘Some Nights’ topping a host of album of 2012 lists.
CHRIS MARSHMAN