The idea for this came from me wanting to write an article on the many 'overrated' things in the world. I thought on it, and what things were really so overrated they deserved their own page to more or less slander them. I realised that's just what so many people already do today on the internet, mouthing off about what they think 'sucks'; go to any music message boards, any site even vaguely related to music, and people will be senselessly arguing over what's better and what is overrated. Which band is better – the Clash or the 101ers? Oh, of course, the Clash are overrated so the 101ers are better. What about Gorguts albums? Well, Obscura is their most well-known album; it must be overrated! Their purist death metal albums must be much better! It's this kind of bullshit that's really bringing music down these days, and it's hilarious, too. If the musicians in question saw these people sat on their arses worrying about it all so much, they'd either laugh, feel really sorry for them, or kick their lazy arses into gear and tell them to learn a fucking instrument before they get so judgmental. People become elitist pricks behind their computer screens. So, I decided, talking about what bands, albums, or films are 'overrated' is both unnecessary and also just begging to open a can of worms of people arguing over the claims (well, if anyone actually read this, anyway). So, what I decided would be better is to talk about some of the less publicly acclaimed bands and films; give some classics their deserved attention. (Note: you may have noticed my fondness for the 90's post-hardcore music before; this serves as my final main work on it).
I'm starting this section with a band from Washington D.C. that started in the late 1990's, called Faraquet. Forming from another great D.C. band, Smart Went Crazy, they released just one full studio album (something so common with lesser-known great bands) and later on a collection of their singles and rarities, and afterwards two of the members formed another band, Medications, who, sadly, didn't quite fill the space of Faraquet and live up to their unique blend of jazz guitar, emotional and occasionally monotone vocals, really weird time signature shifts, and punk influence. Faraquet had a particularly singular sound; for all the great "post-hardcore" music of the 90's, you could usually see the influence of other bands seeping through. Fugazi had the band members previous projects (such as Embrace and Rites of Spring) fuelling their early work, Drive Like Jehu had a definite hardcore punk and riff-rock vibe, and Jawbox had a late 1980's Chicago post-punk feel all over their work; Faraquet are something altogether different. The guitar work is the central attraction here, especially since the guitarist is also the singer – a feat not to be taken lightly, as even singing a different vocal melody over power chords can be tough sometimes; this guy goes all out and all over the place. One only needs to listen to the opening track of their lone album (The View from this Tower), Cut Self Not – a track that lyrically seems to encourage living one's life – to hear the potential this band has and how much they live up to it. It serves as a great opening statement to the album.
The View from this Tower (2000, Dischord) is, in my mind, one of the best albums from the start of the millennium, and hands-down the greatest 'math rock' album of the decade. Everything that came after this seems limp and easy in comparison. The instrumental sections are astounding, whilst the lyrics are intelligent and somewhat cryptic without being pompous or smarmy, even chucking in the occasional 'fuck' for punk cred. Most post-hardcore bands, especially post-2000, seem to veer to either the soft side, i.e. the more 'emo' side of things, or to the dissonant and intense side of it all; Faraquet know how to balance themselves perfectly, with beauty and harshness sitting side by side, complimenting each other and never going too far into either. Track three, The Fourth Introduction, is a great example of this: it starts with a dissonant chord being hit repeatedly, with occasional (and incredibly fast and short) arpeggios in between for relief. When their reflective side goes all out though, the results are equally great – namely the fifth track, Conceptual Separation of Self. The longest track on the album, complete with brooding cello, is one of the most accomplished on the album, knowing when to abide by 'less is more' and just flowing on a lovely chord progression with small alterations (such as short extra sections or additional beats) throughout.
Guitarist/vocalist Devin Ocampo is clearly a highly trained musician, being proficient in more than just guitar (he added instruments such as keyboard, trumpet and percussion to various tracks in their career), but his guitar work is the highlight of the band. It's no surprise that King Crimson are listed as an influence alongside Fugazi and Nation of Ulysses; Ocampo's guitar work has some similarities, particularly to Robert Fripp's work on Crimson's 1973 album Red (and even more in particular it's title track). It's complex, seemingly muddled in parts, and often relentless, yet for the most part he keeps his tone clean and mellow sounding. If it were heavily distorted, and had some blast beat drumming to accompany it, it might sound like some fucked technical death metal, yet the tone and Chad Molter's equally jazzy drumming keep it firmly in it's indie/math/post-punk rock sound. From what I can tell, Ocampo plays with his fingers and not a pick, which would certainly add to the mellow sound he gets from the instrument, and also more closely associates him with a jazz style. But this is rock, not jazz; and at the end of the day, Faraquet rock. You wouldn't mosh to it, but it's as driving and exciting as any rock'n'roll, with the cerebellum to back it up.
Their lone album is luckily not their only recorded material; the collection of non-album tracks Anthology 1997-98 provides us with a more complete picture of the band, from the opening track, the soft and pretty Parakeet to the musically astounding single The Whole Thing Over, to the last track, an alternate version of TVftT track 'Sea Song'. For anyone who's heard their debut, they know finding this anthology is essential. As a long play album, it's as good as their debut, if not as cohesive, but thus is the nature of compilations such as this. Faraquet split up shortly after The View from this Tower for no reason I can discern, as it seems to go for most great DC bands. Ocampo and Molter formed Medications, this time with Molter on bass rather than drums, but have not released anything as influential or original as their work with Faraquet yet. Faraquet also reformed briefly in 2007 for a DC show and a tour of Brazil.
It seems unfair for such great bands to be washed under in a flood of generic music. It happens all the time, though; talent does not equal fame. Perhaps Faraquet were a few years too late and before their time equally; in a time when bands such as Foals can get such attention, Faraquet's remaining obscurity seems unwarranted. But then, maybe them and their loyal fans wouldn't want to be revealed to the kind of people who like those kind of bands. In a world of ever-growing musical ignorance and bad taste, it's important for real music fans to have something to latch on to. Hopefully, in the years and decades to come, Faraquet will be recognised not just as an obscure but talented math rock band, but one of the most singular, unique, dynamic, and most of all, interesting bands of the turn of the millennium.
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