The fourth full-length album from Northern Ireland’s Divine Comedy finds frontman Neil Hannon and arranger Jobi Talbot more assured and confident of their own talents than ever before – making Fin De Siຌ one of the standout album releases of the season.
A headlong rush into the next millennium, the album is epic and baroque without once straying into pomposity. From the first single, Generation Sex (released on September 14) through the booming Sweden, Hannon’s ear for layered sound marks him out as a latter-day Phil Spector.
Millennial angst is propped up by the use of a 30-piece choir on Here Comes the Flood, and end-of-the-world imagery is rife throughout the 10 songs on this album.
Even the sign-off tune, Sunrise, is a gloriously colourful and poetic take on the troubles of Hannon’s birthplace.
With support from Radio One’s Evening Session and Simon Mayo to Virgin Radio’s Chris Evans (The Divine Comedy will also play live on TFI Friday shortly after the album’s release), Fin De Siຌ deserves to rocket to the top of the album charts and hang around for a considerable while.
A modern-day masterpiece.
