Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
Even in the early part of the 21st century when everything from heavy metal dub to unlistenable lo-fi shoegazer mumblings gets rave reviews in the online press, progressive rock still has a bad name. So when a band comes along claiming both ELO and Sly & the Family Stone as influences, you can't help but cringe. Thankfully, the oddly punctuated band known as Fun. doesn't take itself too seriously. It's progressive, but in the best possible way. Full string sections provide Beatlesque swells of sound, churchy harmonies hint at African American Gospel music and the swooning vocals of Queen, and, yes, the rhythm section does have some of the pop bombast of ELO, but the diverse elements all come together neatly in service of the song. The arrangements break down rigid song structures with an open-ended and open-minded creativity that ranges far and wide over the musical spectrum. This music needs to be listened to as an album, in one sitting, so you can appreciate the way the musical and lyrical ideas flow together and play off of each other. That said, there are moments of genius that grab you even on your first casual listen. "At Least I'm Not as Sad (As I Used to Be)" sounds like a long-winded country song title, but it's a cabaret-flavored rock song with a vaguely Latin instrumental break, big grand piano flourishes, a nursery rhyme chorus, and a big finish. The ambiguous lyric deals with the loss of friends, or maybe the loss of one's soul, and could be a parable about the music business, or just growing up, as Nate Ruess sings it in a tenor voice full of an adolescent yearning. Life-long love is not often addressed in rock music, but that's the subject of "The Gambler." You could call it the grown-up cousin of "When I'm 64," a long, beautiful, linear narrative that takes love from 18 to old age, making the journey sound lovely and worthwhile. "Be Calm" is based in part on the melody from Beethoven's "Ode to Joy," an old prog rock trick, but Fun. keeps thing moving brightly along. The song is about an approaching nervous breakdown, and the song's shifting tempos -- from jittery verse to soothing chorus -- aptly convey the singer's growing panic. In the '70s, a lot of prog rock was marred by pretentious or overly sincere or consciously mythic lyrics. Ruess, main wordsmith for Fun., doesn't fall into that trap. His lyrics have a way of investigating the larger truths of life -- loneliness, the struggles of maintaining relationships, growing up, insecurity, even death -- with a witty approach that keeps the songs bubbling merrily along on a positive note.
© j. poet /TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From £10.83/month
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
fun., MainArtist
2009 fun. Music LLC 2021 fun. Music LLC
Album review
Even in the early part of the 21st century when everything from heavy metal dub to unlistenable lo-fi shoegazer mumblings gets rave reviews in the online press, progressive rock still has a bad name. So when a band comes along claiming both ELO and Sly & the Family Stone as influences, you can't help but cringe. Thankfully, the oddly punctuated band known as Fun. doesn't take itself too seriously. It's progressive, but in the best possible way. Full string sections provide Beatlesque swells of sound, churchy harmonies hint at African American Gospel music and the swooning vocals of Queen, and, yes, the rhythm section does have some of the pop bombast of ELO, but the diverse elements all come together neatly in service of the song. The arrangements break down rigid song structures with an open-ended and open-minded creativity that ranges far and wide over the musical spectrum. This music needs to be listened to as an album, in one sitting, so you can appreciate the way the musical and lyrical ideas flow together and play off of each other. That said, there are moments of genius that grab you even on your first casual listen. "At Least I'm Not as Sad (As I Used to Be)" sounds like a long-winded country song title, but it's a cabaret-flavored rock song with a vaguely Latin instrumental break, big grand piano flourishes, a nursery rhyme chorus, and a big finish. The ambiguous lyric deals with the loss of friends, or maybe the loss of one's soul, and could be a parable about the music business, or just growing up, as Nate Ruess sings it in a tenor voice full of an adolescent yearning. Life-long love is not often addressed in rock music, but that's the subject of "The Gambler." You could call it the grown-up cousin of "When I'm 64," a long, beautiful, linear narrative that takes love from 18 to old age, making the journey sound lovely and worthwhile. "Be Calm" is based in part on the melody from Beethoven's "Ode to Joy," an old prog rock trick, but Fun. keeps thing moving brightly along. The song is about an approaching nervous breakdown, and the song's shifting tempos -- from jittery verse to soothing chorus -- aptly convey the singer's growing panic. In the '70s, a lot of prog rock was marred by pretentious or overly sincere or consciously mythic lyrics. Ruess, main wordsmith for Fun., doesn't fall into that trap. His lyrics have a way of investigating the larger truths of life -- loneliness, the struggles of maintaining relationships, growing up, insecurity, even death -- with a witty approach that keeps the songs bubbling merrily along on a positive note.
© j. poet /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 15 track(s)
- Total length: 01:03:56
- Main artists: fun.
- Label: fun. Music
- Genre: Pop/Rock Rock Alternative & Indie
2009 fun. Music LLC 2009 fun. Music LLC
Improve album informationWhy buy on Qobuz...
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalogue with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.