In 2014, Fear of Men - a collaboration between two British art students, guitarist and vocalist Jessica Weiss and guitarist Daniel Falvey - debuted with Loom, an album that seemed true to their stage name (which was inspired by 'androphobia', a rare anxiety disorder characterized by an unusual and consistent fear of men) with its explorations of mental illness, loneliness, mortality and co-dependency.
On tracks like "Alta/Waterfall", Weiss articulated a deep need for companionship in the face of terrible isolation ('You will never leave me/ As long as I tie with my bones/ Trust in me completely/ Show me there's no world outside our own') while acknowledging that such intensity cannot endure ('Take me to the waterfall when it's over, when it's over'). "Descent" was darker exploration of the co-dependency of love, with Weiss mournfully noting that 'There is a sickness in our path/ That keeps me from your door' after acknowledging the relationship's positive effects on her pysche.
With track titles like "Ruins", "Trauma", "Island" and "A Memory", you would not be mistaken to expect similar themes to appear in Fear of Men's second album Fall Forever (2016). The key difference, however, is that the jangle-pop elements and bright rhythms from the former album (which might remind you of Camera Obscura) have been replaced by a leaner, more austere sonic template. "Sane", the 9th track from the album, with its brooding synths, stuttering drums, and distorted guitars is a good example of the duo's heightened commitment towards evoking existential malaise.
The verses and chorus are similarly taut, allowing Weiss to contemplate her relationship with a problematic lover in bouts of moody introspection and frantic realizations of self-truths:
'I possess nothingI’m free from fearI’m a monument to myselfI see you drowningHalf flesh half stoneWith ambitions that drain your healthYou hear me(Secrets)You run from meYou hear me(You hear me)I knowYou hear me(Secrets)You run from meYou hear me(You hear me)You know, you know, you knowIt’s in your eyes when you’re perfectly saneIt’s in your blood when you can’t bear these heavy thoughts againIt’s in your eyes when you’re perfectly saneIt’s in your blood when you can’t bear these heavy thoughts again'
Lyrics: Genius
Weiss proves to be as ambivalent, allusive and semi-abstract as she was on Fear of Men's debut album, but the repetitiveness is productive. These songs offer no easy or instant catharsis, after all, offering instead to reward multiple listens with a more layered understanding of the band's complex dialectic.
