Fearless Vampire Killers (FVK) are certainly a band on the rise, they already have a dedicated fan base, sold out tour-dates and even their own social network dedicated to their supporters. ‘Unbreakable Hearts’ is the follow up to their 2012 underground success ‘Militia of the Lost’. Strange to think they have been overlooked by major labels for this long.
From the first chord you can hear FVK have a spring in their step, noticeable in tracks like ‘Turn Your Heart Into A Tomb’. In the past the Beccles boys have been compared to AFI, My Chemical Romance and Aiden – but this album echoes their melodic influences such as Queen, Alkaline Trio or even Green Day. FVK are certainly their own band and have their own sound, but I can imagine the black parade MCR left behind might have a new five-piece to follow.
There is also more of a confidence in ‘Unbreakable Hearts’ as we can hear experimentation with a synth heavy sound on power-ballad ‘Taste The Iron On Your Lips’ which ends with a touch of Radiohead distortion. Rock bands shouldn’t be afraid to experiment in the studio, along with the likes of BMTH – this is a refreshing change in an industry that has been accused of taking itself too seriously as of late.
Back to Goth-tinged punk pop on following numbers like ‘In Wondrous Rage’ and especially ‘Dream Of You’ which sounds like a surreal mix of A-ha and Smashing Pumpkins (but not a bad thing by any means). The title track, and ‘Maeby’, are similar to tracks on their previous album but is still pure FVK.
Although it isn’t a huge leap in terms of genre and style ‘Unbreakable Hearts’ does show progression in this band’s output. Hopefully their next album might have a major label behind it, and the men in black behind this record might have more to play with in the studio. ‘Remember My Name’ has a hint of Muse influence in it and it took them a few albums to get noticed too. Let’s hope this is the band’s ‘launch pad’ album as they are already doing amazingly in terms of productivity and still have a lot of potential to shine brighter.
