"When in doubt, lean towards letting the world in," advises Fontaines D.C. "It’s scary. In fact, you will probably be terrified most of the time. But do it anyway. With eyes open." Barely a year after the release of their hugely acclaimed and award-winning debut album Dogrel, Fontaines D.C. return with their sophomore album, A Hero’s Death. The band’s explosive rise to the top has been potent, and their latest offering represents the band’s reaction to the intensity of life on the road and managing the expectations of others.

Although Dogrel producer Dan Carey is back at the helm, with Abbey Road’s Christian Wright once again taking on mastering duties, A Hero's Death is sonically distinct from their debut, and represents the next chapter in the post-punk band’s career.

In a recent interview with NME, Fontaines D.C. singer Grian Chatten cited The Beach Boys as a major influence on the Irish quintet’s latest record: “[The Beach Boys created] a dream-like, lying-back-on-a-lilo daydreaming sort of feeling we wanted to capture. The thing about Brian Wilson and other people like Lee Hazlewood that really appealed to us when we were in the mood for escapist art was that they had a thoroughly built-up fantasy world that they’d quite fully realised in a sonic format. We talked a lot about the fantasy of our world and how we wanted to bring that to life.” "Fantasy,” “dream-like,” and “daydream” are all very much appropriate descriptions of A Hero’s Death.

Nearly every song on the album sounds like it's drifting and floating, right from the opening track I Don’t Belong. The song builds hypnotically before Chatten’s laid-back vocals enter. Euphoric bass lines and subtle guitar tones blend on Televised Mind while surreal sonics take over A Lucid Dream, a track of intense force. 

The decision to take a radical approach has worked perfectly, with A Hero’s Death having all the credentials of a classic rock and roll album. Produced by Music Producer’s Guild award-winner Dan Carey and mastered by Abbey Road’s Christian Wright, who was thrilled to master the project: “My Emerald Isle pride rises to the brim when being allowed to tweak Fontaines D.C. music. The symbiosis of Dan Carey (MPG Producer of the Year) and the band drives deeper on album two. Hard and darker and yet deeper and more introspective, it’s every bit Dogrel’s successor and just as wonderful”.

In November, the Dublin band were also performing at the O2 Academy Brixton for livestreamed online concert. The virtual gig saw them perform the entirety of their latest album, which was run exclusively via the MelodyVR app where fans could watch through virtual reality headsets or smartphones and choose from multiple camera angles to make the show their own.

From March 2021, COVID dependent, the band will also be embarking on their European tour, starting in Spain and arriving back in the UK by May. Find out the full list of tour dates here.

You can purchase the album now on the Abbey Road Shop.