Beginning with a building, quiet intensity infused with Queen-esque vocals, pop-alternative act Fun.'s latest effort "Some Nights" shrouds modern mindsets with an utterly theatrical background.
The intro, starting soft and growing into a cacophony of pounding piano and stressed vocals, sets a precedent for the emotional variety the album contains. Setting a stage filled with present-day vitriol ("Tea parties and Twitter/I've never been so bitter...") and opening the curtains on a mesh of musical styles, the trio created a mashup of two worlds that form a composite of contemporary culture.
The title track, complete with a capella introduction, sets the overall anthemic tone of the album, using heavy drum beats and the soft yet biting rebel yell of singer Nate Ruess as its driving force.
To reinvent its usual sound on this second record, Fun. added hip-hop producers Jeff Bhasker (Kanye West, Drake) and Emile Haynie (Kid Cudi, The Roots) who added a technological depth to the indie-pop tunes.
Tracks such as "One Foot" combine big band with simple beats, featuring member Jack Antonoff's repeating trumpet section and singer Nate Ruess' vocals in a more standard, borderline rap tone, fiercer and more biting than some of the other songs. Songs, like the '80s techno-rock-infused "It Gets Better," feature slight autotune and a quickened pace reminiscent of bands like Hellogoodbye.
"We Are Young" (featuring Janelle Monae) is the song that recently sparked the Fun. fan train with radio play and a commercial feature. The combination of its rising chorus and repetitive, simple drum beats and keyboard chords make it the easiest to sing along with the album.
Other rousing songs include the calmer "Carry On," with lyrics like "May your past be the sound/Of your feet upon the ground," as if inspiring listeners in the plights and journeys that life may take them.
Empathize with the depressed thoughts post-breakup (in the acoustic, guitar-heavy "Why Am I The One") and to the apathy after a loss (the hip-hop tinged "All Alone").
The latter is another case of the band's ability to mask dejected feelings with a catchy tune
With such an appealing combination of musical genres, along with a lyrical repertoire of identifiable sentiments for today's youth, Fun.'s youthful feel, both in song and in spirit, marks it as a truly audience-attentive act.
Fun. is also embarking on a nationwide tour. Florida dates include stops in Tampa and Orlando on March 7 and 8, respectively. Find out more about the band and tickets to their shows by checking them out on their Facebook page or www.ournameisfun.com.
Fun.'s second album, "Some Nights," experiments with emotional new sounds and beats.
