Review by Brian on May 24, 2015.

Back when I was young teenager I began to explore music outside of metal, I wanted to hear something that was different from all the run of the mill thrash bands that were being force fed to us metalheads. I knew of this band that toured with Voivod and they had a brand new album out. I went to my local record store, Blue Jays Records and Tapes, picked up the long slim cardboard box that housed the CD inside (remember those?). The cover art was different, the band name was written in plain block letters and it was titled The Real Thing. This was it! This is what I'd been looking for.

Faith No More made that transition easier for me because they still incorporated some metallic guitars and some undeniable metal riffs. The Real Thing spent the summer of 1989 in my CD player. Even though the band would never again enjoy the commercial success it did with that album, they would go on to greater things. In 1992 with their release of Angel Dust, Faith No More began to get more experimental.This is when Mike Patton began to shine as the vocalist and they would never be the same. Angel Dust is a masterpiece and has never been matched. The follow up King For a Day...Fool for a Lifetime did well to further their sound and is near perfect. However, Album of the Year was sub par by their standards and then they broke up and left us craving more.

Fast forward 17 years. I caught wind of the new single "Motherfucker", this was classic Faith No More. Spoken word, pseudo rap versus with the ultra catchy chorus with Patten's trademark vocals. I remained cautiously optimistic as I awaited to get Sol Invictus in my hands. Why not? It has been almost two decades since their last release and comeback reunion albums often fall short of past glories. At first I wasn't sure what I thought, but through several listens I realized that Sol Invitus is a triumphant return for Faith No More. Musically it falls somewhere between the last two releases, containing the best elements of both. It's as if they haven't missed a beat.

Sol Invictus has all the elements that we have become accustom to. Melding different genres, catchy choruses, sarcastic lyrics and Mike Patton's amazing voice. However this isn't just regurgitated shit that we heard 20 years ago. Sol Invictus is fresh and the appropriate comeback album, with a whole set of songs destined to become classics. Whether it be the quick paced and punk driven "Superhero", the doom laden and sorrowful majesty of "Cone of Shame" or the funky "Rise of the Fall" they all leave an imprint on your brain and have you singing them in the shower. The back to back Faith No More stamp is left right near the end of the album with "Motherfucker" and "Matador". To me these 2 songs have that classic feel.

Clocking in at around 40 minutes and containing couple so so songs makes this album a little too short for an 18 year wait. However the meat of the album is extremely strong and fans of the band should be pleased with it. So 25 years a later and Faith No More's music is still "The Real Thing"

Rating: 8 out of 10