Review:

on 2011-11-16 CharlesMartel Said:

It always seemed odd to me that a band which is in the vanguard of keeping alive the spirit of the punks of the seventies should have named themselves after a Marillion album. I mean, prog rock epitomised to the punks all that was wrong and outdated with music with its concepts, its deep and meaningful themes, and its long droning passages of enforced virtuosity. Still, I suppose you have to get a name from somewhere.

"The Argument" was Fugazi's last album and it is not hard to see why. The band's sound had progressed and matured to an extent that it was almost no longer recognisable in comparison with their debut, "Repeater". Who would have imagined that they would produce an album with some close vocal harmonies and guitar lines which, on "Cashout" for example, sound just like the Red Hot Chili Peppers. This was probably as far as Fugazi could go and they knew it.

At times, the album is almost radio-friendly. For a start, the album has been well put together, which to the original punks was almost a secondary consideration. There are no bum notes, the production is just right and the band play their way through the album with a professionalism which may be seen to belie their roots. Each instrument has its own space, and can be clearly heard, and yet are not so separate from each other that they fail to contribute to the overall sound. The band are less loud and less angry and seem to have accepted that this album may as well be their last. I don't know, but it has a certain finality about it. Dare I say Fugazi seem to have recognised they have grown up and decided to reflect that fact in this album.

The main problem I have with "The Argument" is inconsistency. The first five tracks are the best by far. After "The Kill" it all goes rapidly downhill. Indeed, had this been an EP consisting of the first five tracks, this may well have been a classic. As it is, the other side if you will rather lets the whole thing down. The mix between experimental songs and the more traditional (for Fugazi at least) is another problem. It makes listening to the album very difficult for it takes you on a pathway and then switches to another before you have had time to settle in. Maybe that is the point, I don't know. But I will say one thing, it is not often that you find a band going out on what for them is a true high, despite the inconsistencies, unless mandated by tragedy or something. Fugazi managed to do just that.
Rating: 6/10