Fucked Up have built an estimable reputation for being the punk band that doesn't take the easy way out creatively. From 2008's
The Chemistry of Common Life onward, they've pushed the boundaries of their chosen genre as well as their own creative frameworks, and 2018's
Dose Your Dreams and 2021's Year of the Horse are as rich, challenging, and rewarding as anything their contemporaries released in the same era. But there are probably a few fans who wish
Fucked Up might backtrack just a bit to put their listeners on more familiar ground, and for them, the 2022 collection
Do All Words Can Do will be a nice trip down memory lane. When
Fucked Up released their 2011 concept album,
David Comes to Life, they created a wealth of accompanying material that would further the narrative and help define the characters, including a separate album of songs by fictive bands from "David"'s hometown. Among all this, they issued four non-LP singles whose songs fit into the LP's story arc, and
Do All Words Can Do brings together those eight tunes, along with a 14-second "demo" of the primary guitar riff for "Queen of Hearts." These songs lean toward what's most accessible about
Fucked Up --
Damian Abraham's throaty growl is as harsh as ever, but the melodies are engaging and effective, the guitars soar and ring as much as they pummel, and the bursts of harmonies and honest-to-goodness pop hooks that bob up on occasion bring a ray of sunshine to the impassioned fury of the music. All of which is to say this is a welcome supplement to
David Comes to Life, and since that's one of their most celebrated and popular albums, this a rare example of
Fucked Up fans knowing just what they're in for when they spin this for the first time. (Of course, their most obsessive followers may already have those rare singles, in which case they may welcome having backup copies in a more convenient format). This is also quite compact by the standards of a
Fucked Up album in 2022; while Year of the Horse clocked in at 94 minutes,
Do All Words Can Do is over and done in less than 28 minutes. So if you love
Fucked Up and especially love
David Comes to Life,
Do All Words Can Do should be right up your alley. And if you're not familiar with the band, this is a handy, time-efficient way to give them a chance in a relatively welcoming package. ~ Mark Deming