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Things Are Going To Get Serious: An Interview With Funeral For A Friend

Posted by: Necci – Feb 24, 2011

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Funeral For A Friend are a band from the United Kingdom--actually from the small city of Bridgend, in the south of Wales--who combine influences from emo, punk, metal, and hardcore into a powerful, varied, and original sound. They've been making records for a decade now, including 2005's Hours and 2007's Tales Don't Tell Themselves, which reached #12 and #3, respectively, on the UK album charts. However, similar success in the United States has eluded them thus far. Now, with the forthcoming release of their fifth album, Welcome Home, Armageddon, on Good Fight Music, they're prepared to take things to the next level here in America. I've been a fan of theirs for over half a decade now, so when their label offered me a chance at an interview, I didn't hesitate. I sent in some questions over email, and drummer/backing vocalist Ryan Richards answered them. Here's the conversation we had:

Andrew: You've been together for a decade now. How do you think your maturation as a band has changed the way you approach the creative as well as the business aspects of making music?

Ryan: I think we've learned what we're really good at, what our strengths are, and what our fans' expectations of us are. We've been down a lot of different avenues, creatively, over the past 9 years--and this record is the culmination of those journeys, and us putting on record what we believe to be what all the best elements of Funeral for a Friend. Business wise--we've definitely learned to curb the extravagance and keep our eyes on the finances a whole lot better than we did in the start! We've wasted money on some really stupid things down the years!

Andrew: Your new album is on Good Fight Music, the new label from the former owners of Ferret, who released your first two albums. What led you to return to working with them?

Ryan: The main thing was the love the folks at the label had for this new record.We'd worked with some of the guys at Ferret, and they did an incredible job of introducing us to the United States and building our careers across the pond. We feel like we're rebuilding now, having been away so long, and we really feel like we're coming back home by working with the guys again.Trust is a big word in this industry, but we really do trust Good Fight to do the best for us and our music - because they've done such a great job in the past for us.

Andrew: I noticed that your 2009 greatest hits collection, Your History Is Mine, was released by Atlantic, who'd released your first three albums, even though your fourth album, 2008's Memory And Humanity, was not on Atlantic. What were the circumstances that caused this situation? How did your time on Atlantic Records go for the band as a whole? Would you sign to a major label again?

Ryan: Basically, when we signed to Atlantic, part of the contract was that they could option a Greatest Hits record after a certain number of records. This applied even after we left. Atlantic decided that they were going to use this option, so we figured that it was best for us to get involved and try to make it a real cool, worthwhile package--rather than a record label cash-in that might have been thrown together.

All in all, our time at Atlantic was good. We learned a lot from being on a huge label like that. I'm not sure we'd sign with another major, but you never know. All I do know is that we're really happy to be working with the labels we're working with currently.

Andrew: The musical transition from Hours in 2005 to Tales Don't Tell Themselves in 2007 was a somewhat jarring one for me as a fan, and it took me a long time to get used to the new sound you explored on Tales. What motivated the decision to change your sound as much as you did inbetween those two albums?

Ryan: Boredom. Plain and simple. We were just sick of hearing the same formula, hearing the same type of music, seeing the same image with every band that was coming through, and Tales was a rebellion against that--consciously or subconsciously at the time. I think we found it a burden being a frontrunner of a scene that we never really felt part of, and we just wanted to escape. It was great to be able to do that--but it was also hard for a lot of fans to understand and accept. I think more people will go back now and listen to and enjoy Tales now that we're making heavier, more technical music again. I think a lot of people thought they'd "lost" us on that record, but I hope now they see it as the departure we needed to take at that time.

[NOTE: I myself experienced the exact phenomenon Ryan describes in this answer. When I was researching for this interview, I pulled my copy of Tales Don't Tell Themselves back out for the first time in probably two years, and in listening to it again, I couldn't remember why I'd ever had a problem adjusting to the sound they used on it. I've been playing it just as much lately as I have the new album.--Andrew]

Andrew: What were the differences in the process of writing lyrics for Tales Don't Tell Themselves, with its single narrative that ran through all of the songs, and the usual lyric-writing process for Funeral For A Friend's songs? Did the narrative approach to the lyrics affect the way the music on the album was written? Do you foresee any future attempts at creating longer conceptual works like Tales Don't Tell Themselves?

Ryan: Matt always writes the lyrics, but he'll admit he was burnt out when Tales came around, and got to the point where he felt he was repeating himself, or had nothing new to say. Taking the concept album route on Tales allowed him to write from the perspective of characters and other people, which meant he didn't have to draw entirely from his own (or even real) experiences. The narrative definitely affected the music though. A lot of the songs were written with the themes and lyrics in mind. It was almost like writing a score to a movie. I'd actually very much like to do a concept album again. I think one day, maybe we will.

Andrew: It's unusual for a band that's moved in a pop direction from a heavier original sound to return to their previous sound on later albums. However, that's exactly what you did on Memory And Humanity. What motivated the decision to step away on that album from the more pop-oriented sound of Tales Don't Tell Themselves?

Ryan: I think Memory was a very confused album. I'm not saying it was bad--but I'm not sure we really knew what we wanted to achieve with it. We just knew we wanted it to be different from Tales. It's not a really heavy record nor a really pop record. It's just somewhere in the middle, and for me it's the album of ours I have least attachment to because of that.

Andrew: Why did you call the new album Welcome Home Armageddon? What does the title mean?

Ryan: It can have many meanings. It DOES have many meanings. There's no right or wrong answer, but I like to think that it's a warning--Funeral for a Friend are back, and things are going to get serious...

Andrew: Musically, it feels like Welcome Home Armageddon changes significantly from song to song, containing both some of your heaviest and some of your most melodic material. Was this more varied sound planned in advance, or dictated by the writing process? How do you feel about the album's eclectic sound?

Ryan: I think it's because we've got two new members in the band since the last album, and they're really strong songwriters on their own right. A lot of the songs started from different members, but we all worked on them together to get that cohesive feel. We wanted a really diverse record but wanted to retain the spirit of Funeral for a Friend with every song--and I think we've done that.

Andrew: It seems like a lot of the songs on Welcome Home Armageddon have to do with getting older but still feeling frustration with life's unfulfilled potential. What inspired the lyrics of such songs as "Old Hymns" and "Damned If You Do, Dead If You Don't"?

Ryan: Matt wrote the lyrics, but through speaking to him about it, I think he's more frustrated at the attitudes of people who just accept the world as it is, and let it spiral out of control. It's about empowerment, and making things different if you're not happy with anything in your life, or in the world.

Andrew: As a band who has up until now enjoyed more success in the UK than in the USA, what are the major differences between your experience of being a band in the UK and in the USA?

Ryan: We've actually been lucky to tour with some great bands and play some great festivals in the US, so it's felt very similar! I guess the main difference is the length of tours in the States compared to the UK. You can tour the UK in a week, but spend 3 months in the States. It takes a lot of time and effort to make a mark in the States, but we'd like to think we've reached out to a lot of people over there--and our shows have always been great.

Andrew: What's coming up in 2011 for Funeral For A Friend? Any plans for a US tour?

Ryan: If this album is received as well as we hope it is, then it'd be great to visit you guys again. We've got the right record, the right lineup, and the right label--so I'd certainly hope so! Watch this space..

--

And there you have it! Funeral For A Friend's new album, Welcome Home Armageddon, will be released in America on March 14 by Good Fight Music. You can preorder a copy here.

By Andrew Necci


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