Frank Turner FTHC LP

FTHC is the ninth solo album from British punk and folk artist Frank Turner. Initially striking out as a vocalist in the punk rock band Million Dead, Turner then turned his focus towards a folkier, acoustic-based solo career. Since that time, he has reached international acclaim as a chart-topping, award-winning singer-songwriter. Taking inspiration from early '80s US hardcore band logos, FTHC stands for Frank Turner Hardcore.

FTHC is the follow-up to 2019's No Man's Land and includes the songs "Haven't Been Doing So Well" and "A Wave Across A Bay", the latter a moving tribute to Frightened Rabbit singer Scott Hutchison who passed away in 2018. FTHC was recorded at ARC - Abbey Recording Studios - just outside of Oxford and produced/mixed by Rich Costey (Foo Fighters, Muse, Biffy Clyro).

The album opens with "Non Serviam", a two-minute blast of vitriolic hardcore that reflects the record's title - a genre he again attacks on "My Bad". But elsewhere it darts between punk, folk, hard rock and singer-songwriter confessionals, starting with the single "The Gathering" featuring Jason Isbell and Muse's Dom Howard.

"Haven't Been Doing So Well" captures the emotions that so many have been through in the past year and a half, as Frank explains: "It's exciting to finally get the new music I've been working on out into the world after the last miserable 18 months. It's been a difficult time for a lot of people and their mental health, myself included, and discussing that openly is important to me, so this is a song about anxiety and the struggles that come with that." Turner has always excelled at creating exuberant, cathartic songs from immensely challenging emotions, and that's exactly what he has delivered here with a heartland punk rock anthem that will surely be hollered back to him at shows all over the world.

"Fatherless" is particularly revealing as Turner reflects on childhood trauma. "A Wave Across A Bay" is a beautiful ode to the late musician Scott Hutchison, released with the blessing of Scott's brother and Frightened Rabbit bandmate, Grant Hutchison. "I still miss my friend Scott everyday," says Turner. "His passing left such a huge hole in so many lives. I wrote this song in his honor and memory - it was hard to write and record, but I think it does the man some small justice."

The album ends with a rumination on leaving the capital after 7300 days for a new life on the Essex coast with the bittersweet "Farewell To My City". It's a mini autobiography rooted in time and place, but one that ultimately accepts that it's time to move on.