If there’s one thing Fucked Up love, besides hardcore and prog, and psyhedelic rock and punk, and British pop and, well, pretty much all things rock, that is fucking with our expectations.  David Comes to Life, their upcoming record, is being billed as a rock opera and a concept album.  About what?  The poster above may or may not help.  “The Other Shoe,” featured below, is being billed as the first single, and the first voice you hear is not bellowing growl of frontman, Damian Abraham, but two much sweeter sounding voices harmonizing.  The song itself, while always on the edge of blasting into full hardcore fury, opts to maintain that tension by gradually increasing in volume and complexity.  Before you know it Fucked Up’s three guitarists, and who know how many tracks of guitar, are swirling throughout the mix with melodies recalling the more expansive work of bands like The Verve or Spiritualized.  This isn’t hardcore.  Then again, when have Fucked Up been content to be just a hardcore band?

MP3: Fucked Up – The Other Shoe

Fucked Up’s David Comes to Life will be released June 7th on Matador Records.