New album by 80’s intensely influential stalwarts, contemporaries/incestuous bandmates with Nick Cave/Birthday Party, all Aussies who transplanted to the fertile soil of pre-wall-fall Berlin (see the Wim Wenders film “Wings of Desire”). Legendary is the only word. See also cronies The Triffids, an underappreciated Aussie band that some say Nick Cave ripped off. Lovely lovely dramatic stuff here, but the CD takes a few tracks to find it, leaning toward a more rockin’ style (sorta how Cave turned into Grinderman recently). All tracks are great. The absence of one Rowland S. Howard on guitar is glaring, heart wrenching. Its almost as if they purposely left the guitar understated in tribute to his late soul. FCC on title track 7.

1) (3:50) straight forward rock feel, somewhat tribal on the toms, reminds me a lot of Red Lorry Yellow Lorry
2) (4:33) upbeat driving
3) (4:09) driving pace again but the vocals are more desperate and guitar twang appears, like what makes them great
4) (6:48) this sounds like the older stuff: a slow dark dramatic sway, epic and lovely (“best track”?)
5) (6:31) another chapter in the last two drama queens of songs, slow to build, heavy
6) (4:09) a slow swaying ballad, lovely and slow, slight western twang, dramatic soaring, wow
7) (5:19) FCC title track, quick “motherfucker”, upbeat rocker
8) (5:48) lovely duet, slow, somber violin, lyrics on the theme of America, our strengths, failings, great