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Feral Children: Second To The Last Frontier [Album Review]

Feral Children at Capital Hill Block Party, Photo by Fense.

Lead singer Jeffrey Keenan has the voice of a younger Isaac Brock (Modest Mouse), if not the wild-eyed nature. His nature is his own and you can see it when he grabs the drum-sticks—that intensely focused look in his eyes. Feral Children have come to be a dominant name in Seattle thanks to these performances and their debut LP, Second To The Last Frontier, is finally ready for public consumption.

And I must say that the album is brilliant. The name Feral Children makes one think of a wild-eyed kid that grew up in nature, isolated from human contact, devoid of social finesse. In a way, the music of Feral Children conveys this well on The Last Frontier. Listen to “Spy/Glass House” and “Jaundice Giraffe” and “Cannibal Prison” and you can hear the wilderness in the tribal percussion (thanks to Keenan’s addition on an extra drum) and in Josh Gamble’s erratic distorted guitar breakdowns, and, of course, in Keenan’s screams.

Keenan is not the only vocalist. Longtime friend Jim Cotton (bass) joins him on vocals occasionally, and even takes the lead on a few tunes. No matter if it’s Keenan or Cotton on lead, the intense vocals that shine through the clutter of modern day rock in songs like “Billionaires Vs. Millionaires” and “Baby Joseph Stalin”, where the Brock-onian style songwriting is apparent both in lyrics and guitar riffs.

The electricity behind Feral Children’s music, whether it is that recorded on a disc like The Last Frontier or performed live, is enormous and beastly. What else would you expect from Feral Children? Second To The Last Frontier is brilliant… a masterpiece!

Above photo also by Fense. You can purchase the album from Amazon.

Feral Children: Spy/Glass House [mp3]
[audio:0829_feral_children_-_spy_glass_house.mp3|titles=Spy/Glass House|artists=Feral Children]

Second To The Last Frontier by Feral Children

Sarathan [CD, 2008]

1. Spy/Glass House
2. Billionaires Vs. Millionaires
3. Jaundice Giraffe
4. Ex-Blindman
5. Me, Me, Just Me
6. Baby Joseph Stalin
7. Cannibal Prison
8. Lost In The Woods
9. Saint
10. Space Face
11. The Beast = Goldmine
12. Zyghost

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