This sixth album from Chicago’s finest Factory Records-inspired post-punk trio features a significantly altered line-up, as founding member Jonathan van Herik is back in the fold once again (replacing long-time bassist Alianna Kalaba). On paper, that means that FACS now shares exactly the same line-up as the late, great Disappears, but with a bit of a fresh twist, as van Herik has now switched to guitar and frontman Brian Case has switched to bass. Notably, Wish Defense was also Steve Albini’s engineering swan song, which is fitting given that this album absolutely rules.
The same could be said of several other FACS/Disappears releases, of course, but the new guitar/bass configuration brings more melodic bass-driven riffage than previous albums and van Herik’s arty, minimalist guitarwork is every bit as inspired as Case’s own. The result is an album that seems to seamlessly blend the sexed-up deadpan cool of prime Girls Against Boys with the taut muscularity of Fugazi’s rhythm section and the seasick, tremolo-warped guitars of My Bloody Valentine. Choice influences aside, however, FACS embrace an aggressively, pared-to-the-bone style of minimalism that is uniquely their own, which gives van Herik’s alternately smeared, chiming, creaking, percussive, and slashing guitar sounds plenty of room to breathe.
For me, “Sometimes Only” captures the trio at the peak of their powers, as the dragging throb of Case’s thick, distorted bass buzz provides a perfect counterweight for a couple of forays into proggier/spacier terrain, but the title piece’s explosive chorus makes it a lock for the album’s strongest single. While not every piece hits the mark quite as convincingly as those two, the entire album is packed with passages in which every single member of the band is doing something so extremely cool that it makes FACS seem like the best goddamn rock band on the planet regardless of whether or not they actually manage to stick the landing.
