With the release of their new record "Romance", it feels like Fontaines D.C. have finally been elevated to one of the most beloved rock bands of the 2020s. They did it with a killer opening single, the innovative "Starburster", and a lovely second single, an almost redundant but heart-wrenching ballad, "Favourite". They also did it with some good marketing – and they especially did it by finally breaking away from their Post-Punk and Gothic Rock-roots that seemed to leave as many people underwhelmed as it left others enchanted. That’s not to say they broke away from the '80s as their primary source of inspiration though. It’s just that they broadened their horizons as there is a strong notion of '90s Indie- and 2000s stadium-ready Piano Rock in "Romance" (some draw comparisons to Coldplay and U2). Still, it all starts with a fairly unsurprising title track as the opener. We have dark, even menacing atmospherics, industrial elements in the instrumentation, but paired with the almost hopeful core sentiment: "Maybe romance is a place". Although the song is barely more than a prelude to what’s to come, it leaves a strong first impression, before Fontaines D.C. hit us with one of their strongest tracks to date, the aforementioned lead-single "Starburster".

Track 3, titled "Here’s the Thing", was the third single from "Romance" and it’s save to say that this is the weakest song on the record. While there are some cool production elements at play, especially with the electric guitar, the chorus is one of the weakest in the Fontaines D.C. discography and sheds a lacklustre light on the band’s new approach of presenting emotions in a more grand(iose) way in their music.

The opposite is the case for the epic following one-two-punch of "Desire" and "In the Modern World". Both paint a dystopian picture of the world and digitalised post-capitalistic societies. While "Desire" offers a dark outlook on consumerism and how it has shaped us as humans, "In the Modern World" describes a (partly consequential, but truly multicausal) numbness of feelings. "In the modern world, I don’t feel anything", is what Grian Chatten sings here precisely and he repeats it throughout the song like a mantra. Paradoxically, the song is inspired by a drug trip Chatten and a band mate had that made them totally numb as opposed to the overstimulation often experienced in big cities (or the internet for that matter).

Moving on from there, "Bug" is one of the more bland and uninspired cuts from the album. It’s not entirely forgettable, yes, the instrumentation is enjoyable and the writing is quite good, but the song ultimately just fades away without causing much of a stir in any way. Something similar could be said for "Motorcycle Boy", but I find the progression of the song much more captivating. As is the backstory: "Motorcycle Boy" is a tune Chatten wrote for his little brother, who got into poetry as a way to reconnect and communicate with his older, mostly absent brother (at least that’s how Chatten interprets it). I think you can really feel this through the music and the lyrics and I love the vocal sample that starts the song and acts as its instrumental core.

The next song "Sundowner" is another highlight for me and it finishes this slow building that started with "Bug". This is an anthem, except it‘s much too dreamy for it to be one. It‘s a song about friendship, written and with lead vocals performed by Conor Curley. It marks the first time Grian Chatten isn’t on lead vocal in Fontaines D.C..

"Horseness is the Whatness" is another song not written by Chatten, although he sings it. It is easily the most string kissed song on the album – and all the better for it, as it doesn’t have a lot going for it otherwise.

Before we get to the beautiful, warm and well familiar finale "Favourite", which, of course, is a highlight in the track listing, Fontaines D.C. hit us with one last rocker, called "Death Kink", and except for being a rocker, the song doesn’t add much to the album and qualifies firmly as one of the weaker songs in the band‘s catalogue.

So, is "Romance" worth the hype?
Well, yes and no. It‘s not the phenomenal album we were promised, but it’s pretty great and shows a lot of promise for the future of Fontaines D.C., should they continue down the path of expanding their musical language. On some occasions, they already strike gold here, on others, they display exactly why they are such a beloved band, and sometimes, they stumble just a little bit, making "Romance" one of their most captivating and their most inconsistent record yet.