The Futureheads
The Chaos

By Emily Zemler

England’s the Futureheads often don’t get the credit they deserve for appropriating the raw, raucous sound of punk and fusing it with the hip, post-punk revival of recent years. Unlike comparable bands such as Franz Ferdinand or Hot Hot Heat, The Futureheads aren’t reviving the terse, angular riffs of yesteryear so much as infusing punk sensibilities with some indie rock aesthetics. The Chaos, the band’s fourth album, is boisterous and unadorned, offering 11 tracks of straightforward yet still subtly innovative indie punk music. Opening number “The Chaos” immediately charges in, setting the album’s overarching rambunctious tone and leaving behind many of the band’s indie inclinations in favor of under-produced, static-tinged punk. The whole disc is lively, infused with energy that comes through in the musicians’ performances and in singer Barry Hyde’s manic yelp. It’s strange to say it’s a feel-good album since that term is usually reserved for pop artists, but The Chaos is just that.