Hailing from the land down under, Friends With The Enemy is a band of Four Loko-loving Aussies who have been pumping out some of the Southern Hemisphere’s finest melodic punk for over a decade now. Six years have passed since the release of the band’s debut album Declassified, and it seems they’ve made extremely good use of that time. Their new record Divide & Conquer is a marked improvement over all their previous output in every way. The quality of songwriting, playing, and production have all been taken up multiple notches, and the end result is an absolutely killer melodic punk record.
Friends With The Enemy plays a riffy, metallic, brand of melodic punk similar to bands like Strung Out, Belvedere, and Mute. For me, this sound has always necessitated top notch production, and my biggest gripe with the band’s last record Declassified was that it severely lacked in this department. On Divide & Conquer there is no more compromise. This album is head and shoulders above everything this band has done before. The production is on point and the songs finally have a chance to shine. The drums sound punchy as fuck, singer Chelsie Bomb’s voice cuts through the mix, and the vocal doubling, while used quite liberally on some songs, is well executed. Most importantly for me as a guitarist, they nailed the guitar sound on this record.
Anyway, let’s talk about those songs! There are ten of them, and they are really damn good. Starting us off is “Raise the Alarm”, complete with machine gun-like drumming, anthemic choruses, and more whoas than you can shake a stick at. The high point of this album is tracks like “Days Are Numbered” and “Set Me Free”, which lean into the heavier, more metallic side of Friends With The Enemy’s sound, as both guitarists put their fretting hands to the test with an onslaught of relentless chugging riffs. “SML” and “Patricia Anne” are more straightforward melodic punk in the vein of Good Riddance, featuring octave runs that immediately bring to mind the classic “Shadows of Defeat”. And since I’m creatively deficient and can’t find any better way to describe lesser known bands than incessantly name dropping established punk bands, I’ll also concede that “Facebook Value” reminds me a lot of more mid-tempo Pennywise songs like “My God“.
Don’t be misled by my lazy comparisons though, Friends With The Enemy are certainly not just another band imitating the classic “Epi-Fat” sound. Divide & Conquer is one of the more unique punk records I’ve heard this year. It stands on its own as a heavy, melodic, technical, exciting breath of fresh air. And for all the middle aged dudes who have spent the last 20 years listening to Punk In Drublic on repeat while lamenting that punk died in the 90’s, this album is your wake up call.
If you’re not familiar with Friends With The Enemy, right now is a better time than ever to check them out. Divide & Conquer is their best release yet, rivaling the recent output of all the bands I shamelessly name dropped throughout this very review. Give the album a listen below, and go here to find links to all the platforms the digital download is available through.
Super Official Review Score:
Four out of Five Lokos
