The Chaos

The Futureheads are part of the same Sunderland scene that produced Field Music – in fact the latter’s Peter Brewis was the first Futureheads drummer. They came exploding into view in 2004 with a self-titled debut full of jumpy, hook-laden tunes that clearly placed them at the front of the post-punk-revival pack. This was followed by the disappointingly ho-hum News and Tributes, and a third album that – wait, there was a third album? The fourth time around, the Brits may not equal their spectacular debut, but they’ve recovered their ballast and come into their own once more. The XTC-isms they shared with peers like Dogs Die In Hot Cars and the aforementioned Field Music are present in full force here, and they’re backed up by an ample supply of all-important hooks, the kind you can hang big, juicy tunes on. And after four albums, there seems to be no energy letup whatsoever. The Futureheads’ continued breathless exuberance becomes explicable only after realizing how young they were when they started out. “Ballads are for old men,” The Chaos seems to say, “they’d only get in our way!” Rest assured, nothing’s going to slow the sweaty, breakneck pace of these perky, pop-savvy Brits.