Despite this being only their sophomore release, the emo rock outfit’s previous release, A Moment Of Silence was released almost a decade ago. Since then, The Funeral Portrait have been hard at work, honing their craft putting out singles here and there, all culminating with their second album, Greetings From Suffocate City. Looking to spin a tale across the album, the band are bringing theatrical charm and themes into their works. It’s clear from this that devising a story across the album has eaten most of the years since their last efforts, will this long passage of time be what the band are needing to take their music to the next level into the scene?

Bringing in theatrical metalcore frontman Spencer Charnas of Ice Nine Kills for the opening track is an unusual move for an introduction to an album, but this seems to work in the band’s favour as the anthemic track plays out what could be the best song on the album. While the band proudly wears their Three Cheers-era My Chemical Romance inspiration on their sleeves, there’s enough bold, theatrical pizazz to create something wholly new from this sound on the opening title track. Charnas chiming in for his verse clicks together into the melody as if it was meant to be, regardless of the genre differences between the two bands. 

While the first feature of the album works in the bands’ favour, the following three, seem weirdly out of place on the album, the band seemingly falling into the style of whichever guest vocalist they have on board. Whether it’s the southern country twang of Danny Warsnop on “Dark Thoughts” or the menacing Emo-Rock sound of The Used, when frontman Bert McCracken joins on “You’re So Ugly When You Cry”. The band seems to lose their own personality perfectly displayed in the opening tracks. Where this could be seen as the band experimenting with different sounds, the two tracks placed together disjoint the album’s flow.

It’s in the final section of the album, the influences on their sleeves become more of their full outfit, The key stand out tracks for this are “Generation:Psycho” and “Happier Than You”, where aside from Lee Jennings vocals. Either song could sound like it came out of either My Chemical Romance or The Used’s back catalogue. Whilst the band do put on a great performance throughout the tracks, the band seem uneasy to put their own mark on it that they were able to do at the first few chapters of the album. 

The band managed to pull it back together for the final track, “Hearse For Two” and aside from a few vocal runs reminiscent of Gerard Way. The band manage to pull off a satisfying and dramatic end to their album. 

While influences are great to have in settling on your initial sound, The Funeral Portrait seem to have trod on their own toes when pushing these sounds to the centre stage of their album. There is a definite unique quality there, that is shown in the opening tracks that can make The Funeral Portrait stand out as one of the leading emo-rock outfits of the twenties, but this reliance into what’s familiar and comfortable is holding the band back from fulfilling this potential.

Buy the album here:
https://thefuneralportrait.ffm.to/gfsc

5 / 10
CHARLIE HILL
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