Frank Iero and the Future Violents - Barriers

Frank Iero has never been afraid of productivity; even in the six years since My Chemical Romance called it a day, he’s had his finger in many a musical pie. That’s what makes the news of a third solo album - this time with another backing cast, the Future Violents - not too surprising. This time, however, some things are different. There’s an easiness to his genre-swaying - moving from the bluesy opener of ‘A New Day’s Coming’ through to the crunching riffs of ‘Fever Dream’ via the drama of ‘Basement Eyes’ - that feels more accomplished, more confident. Still very much channelling the punk rock that’s been his lifeblood, ‘Barriers’ really benefits from Frank, well, not really having many.