Faith No More - Introduce Yourself (1987)^{Release ID: 270}

Released in 1987, ‘Introduce Yourself’ is the second album by alternative metal outfit Faith No More. It follows on closely to the sound and style of its predecessor, only a slightly better production sets them apart.

I wasn’t overly keen on 1985’s ‘We Care a Lot’, and honestly, I kind of struggled with this one too! The band were certainly something different and unique at the time, and their song-writing is becoming more confident, but, like many later fans, I guess I just tend to dismiss these early, Chuck Mosley releases.

Chuck Mosley, of course, is the vocalist who would be replaced after this album by powerhouse front man Mike Patton of the band Mr. Bungle. Mosley’s rap-like style worked fine, but, I guess it kind of put a limit on what the band could do, and if any band were to thrive without any limitations, it would be Faith No More.

Clutching at straws, but if I had to pick out any notable songs, there’s ‘Chinese Arithmetic’, ‘Anne’s Song’, ‘Blood’, and in particular, a re-recorded version of ‘We Care a Lot’, which is probably the only song I really care to come back to, if ever. It’s a shame, and I certainly don’t mean any disrespect to Chuck Mosley, but with this album out of the way, Faith No More can really move on to becoming the metal heavyweights that they are, while ‘Introduce…’ and ‘We Care…’ can both slip away into obscurity, at least for me, anyway.

Very similar to their debut, same funky grooves, prominent keys and oddball lyrical delivery. The Funk influence is turned all the way up, and it even features some rapping (I assume from Chuck, but most of the members do backup/gang vocals as well). Overall, it’s more focused with better riffs and some good vocal melodies as well, but it’s no huge leap. Still very juvenile, mediocre Alternative Metal, great record for fun, not so much for a serious listen.

Gatekept

Let's just get this out of the way first, shall we? Chuck Mosley on this album sounds like a hobbling drunken man who randomly wandered into the studio and recorded vocals. He sounds like your estranged uncle you only see once a year during holidays belting out karaoke at his favorite local dive bar. He sounds like the fifth in line to be a Ramones reject.

With that over with, Faith No More's Introduce Yourself is certainly a strange album with a lot of conflicting ideas. At its core it feels like a slightly slower and more refined punk album with a plethora of funky bass riffs, but throws in rap and hip-hop influences plus some very 80's synth backings. While I find myself enjoying the straight up punk and funk elements that are accentuated by tracks like "Faster Disco", "Chinese Arithmetic", and "We Care a Lot", the rest of the production that accompanies it just kills all the momentum for me. Mosley's vocals hold up well when they go for driving riffs and melodies, but fall apart during the rap/hip-hop sections or when attempting to sound sincere. The strangely disinterested rapping and spoken word vocals in "The Crab Song", "Death March", and "Anne's Song" sound like they're supposed to be goofy, but they turn out to be too goofy for their own good. The 80's synth backings sometimes add to the goofiness, but otherwise give an interesting contrast to the well-produced and spacious bass and guitar riffs.

This album offers a lot of room for growth if you can get past the gatekeeper of Chuck Mosley, since there are some great bass riffs and choruses overall, but I sadly can't. After repeated listens Introduce Yourself doesn't get any more endearing or emotional, it just gets more annoying. The album is structured around and highlights Mosley's vocals, so it's difficult for me to really enjoy anything else that's going on. I think "awkward" is the best way to describe how Faith No More sound on this one. I'm left with a weird feeling of not knowing what I should have gotten out of any of this and not really wanting to go back to find out.