Facts and fog: Pete Colclasure. Courtesy of Facts about Funerals’ MySpace site.
FACTS ABOUT FUNERALS
Love Songs & Funeral Homes
(Evangeline)
By Todd Lavoie
Just on the off-chance the band name didn’t point you in the direction of the emotional terrain Seattle sextet Facts About Funerals are aiming to mine, the title of their recently released disc should help you out: Love Songs & Funeral Homes. See where we’re going?
The title, in fact, was borrowed from the Daniel Johnston documentary The Devil & Daniel Johnston – asked what his songs were about, those words were the singer’s reply. Evocative and eyebrow-raising, to be sure, but do they apply to Facts About Funerals as well?
Yes and no – death does cast a considerable shadow over the proceedings, but it doesn’t completely consume the album, either. And as for the love songs – well, singer-songwriter Rob Sharp tends to speak more to the uneasy feelings associated with love (obsession, loss, regret, heartache) than the wide-eyed bliss of romance.