SINGLE REVIEW: Falling In Reverse – “Fashionably Late”

Artist: Falling In Reverse
Track: “Fashionably Late”
Album: Fashionably Late

When Falling In Reverse released “Alone” a few weeks back, we thought our site was likely to crash. Only a year had passed since Falling In Reverse released their Epitaph debut, The Drug In Me Is You, but fans were already chomping at the bit for new music. Unfortunately, not many of those rabid followers ever expected to hear frontman Ronnie Radke rapping about how much more money he has than his fans, and the fallout that followed the premiere of “Alone” is still lingering in comment threads at this very hour. Some believed Radke was just testing the waters and welcomed the change of pace as a moment of experimentation, but most seemed to think Radke had simply lost his mind. I tend to think the real answer lies somewhere in the middle, but that song is not why we’ve gathered today.

Earlier this morning (or late last night, depending on who you ask), Falling In Reverse posted a stream of another new song entitled, “Fashionably Late.” The single, which is also the title track for the band’s album, features a return-to-form of sorts with plenty of sassy lyrics from the group’s ever-ridiculous frontman. This time, the focus moves from possessions to making out with your girlfriend’s best friends because she is late to a get together. It’s not exactly rocket science, but no one ever said Radke could work for NASA. Like most of the group’s catalog the song offers numerous tongue-in-cheek lyrics thrown together against a melody that’s too catchy for its own good. It’s the kind of well-structured song that gets stuck in your mind even when you can’t (or in our case, don’t want to) remember the lyrics, and anyone doubting this need only try to escape the final set of “na na na(s)” unscathed.

If you can manage to look beyond the lyrics and general unappealing egotistical flair of Ronnie Radke, the latest offering for Falling In Reverse is actually quite enjoyable. It’s catchy as a song in this scene can hope to be and its structure leads us to believe it’ll be an instant addition to FIR’s setlist. The band tapped into a melody with this track that is sure to strike a chord with fans and newcomers alike while still staying within the sound longtime followers have come to expect. That urban edge we heard on “Alone” is essentially absent here, which will likely please many, but I think it’s still too early to tell if that will be the case for the rest of the album. Radke is known for pushing the limits, and he has already gone on record saying he wanted something different with this release. “Fashionably Late” is the opposite of different, and I’m willing to admit that may be a contributing factor to why I enjoy it, but it doesn’t take a music philosopher to understand how superior this song is to its predecessor.

Fashionably Late arrives in stores June 18. Click here to pre-order the album.

Review written by: James Shotwell (Twitter)

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