From First To Last - From First To Last

From First To Last are back, though not as you may remember them.

After singer Sonny Moore announced he was leaving the band in February 2007, many fans were worried about the future of From First To Last-or FFTL for short. Wanting to move on and keep going, founding guitarist & backup vocalist Matt Good had moved into the lead vocalist position. Friend and guitar tech Matt Manning signed on as bassist, and with Derek Bloom on drums, Travis Richter playing guitar and screaming, FFTL were determined to battle back.

Moving on in a different direction than 2006’s darker, and more experimental Heroine, the band now focuses more now on melodies, and hard driving rock. Determined to leave the past behind them, they signed onto Suretone Records, and quickly began working on new material, eager to bring forth their new identity. “It was our band from the beginning,” Richter says, “but a lot of kids saw Sonny as the front man and assumed he was the heart of From First To Last. So we needed to hurry up and do something without him to show everybody who we really are.”

With that motivation, they toured through most of the summer of 2007, and in October, headed into the studio to record their third full-length album. From First To Last was released on May 6th 2008, and shows the band going for a warmer, more approachable sound. While the band opted for more melodic sounds, which can be heard in songs such as “Medicinal Reality,” they still keep to their energetic, driving guitar riffs, which can be heard in songs such as “I Once Was Lost, But Now Am Profound,” and the album’s opening track, “Two As One.”

The lyrics are very reflective of what the band has gone through. Richter explains, “We were stumped as to what we wanted to write about. I think that’s why, in the end, the songs are all very reflective. When you’re thrown into something that really scary, you start thinking about those things,” while Good adds, “Some of the songs have a more humorous tone, some are trying to be very inspirational. I don’t think there are any negative lyrics on the whole record.”

The track listing on From First To Last is as follows:

1. Two As One
2. The Other Side
3. Worlds Away
4. We All Turn Back To Dust
5. Medicinal Reality
6. A Perfect Mess
7. Tick Tick Tomorrow
8. Deliverance!
9. I Once Was Lost But Now Am Profound
10. Beheaded (Marathon Man)
11. In Memorium In Advance

A few added bonus tracks are also available. Purchasing the album off iTunes, you will get an acoustic version of “Worlds Away” as well as the music video. Purchasing the album at Hot Topic will get you an exclusive track titled “Everything’s Perfect.” The band has just finished a short headlining run, and are taking some time off, but you can catch them headlining on Warped Tour all summer long in a city near you.

I think the band is bound to make a great comeback with the new album, and I personally am extremely glad to hear Matt finally doing lead vocals. I also really love the upbeat sound and the catchy lyrics.