Words: Josh Parsonage
The latest Fontaines D.C. effort ‘It’s Amazing To Be Young’ presents a shift in tone for Grian Chatten but carries the band’s usual gritty underbite alongside it. The Dublin quintet are at their peak, and their exponential growth has showed no sign of losing pace. With the ability to transcend between sound, style, and message Fontaines D.C. Are constantly reinventing themselves in a way which stays true to both their musical vision and worldview.
This latest shift seeks to extract a positive message from times of crisis and uncertainty. Chatten draws upon the expectations placed on young people and the mould they’re expected to fit yet highlights the contradiction of the lives they lead in spite of these pressures.
The story of this song floats around the word “But”, which when accompanied by a guitar tone that etches out a smile leaves a positive aftertaste. With the lines, “But I sang them every word I had / Seems like they’re never gonna understand”, the ‘Romance’ rocker calls upon his catalogue of music exploring Irish identity, political disillusionment, and existential angst. Despite extensive coverage of these themes, he remains misunderstood by those around him.
However, this misunderstanding is an eternal aspect of youth: “That’s the cost that brings you down / But it’s amazing to be young”. Youth persists, it lives independently of the hostile attitudes of those who look down upon it. The nostalgic atmospheric which rings through the joyful riff reinforces this in the idea that everybody always looks back upon their youth in longing.
This nostalgic feel gears Fontaines D.C. for their upcoming string of largely sold-out outdoor shows across the UK and Europe, and it can be expected that ‘It’s Amazing To Be Young’ will become a staple of the Irish band’s summer setlist.
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