On Death Is Nothing To Us, Fiddlehead commit to the anthem
Look, feel free to shoot me down here, but Fiddlehead feel like a generational band. I'm defining 'generational band' as a band from a certain era that have certain signifiers to their sound that, later in their careers, perhaps even after they've disbanded, become their raison d'etre. See the 70s and Steely Dan; see the 90s and Pixies. While those bands became known for slick studio noodling and loud-quiet-loud dynamics respectively, Fiddlehead may go down in the annals of musical history for their commitment to the sub 2:30 anthem. Reverential to both modern day hardcore and the hardcore which stemmed from the Dischord-led DC scene, Fiddlehead combine the two to land somewhere in the middle of that genre and classic American indie rock. You know a Fiddlehead song from Patrick Flynn's passionate sing-shout, from the fact that most of them drive you along at 90mph regardless of if the lyrical content concerns grief or depression or hope, from the fact that you...