THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes have entered into a whole new area on their new album Dark Rainbow. Self-evaluation and reflection are very much on the agenda, paving the way for a sound that puts southern gothic balladry and crooning alt-rock to the front. A sonic evolution and emotional complexity powers this soul-searching expedition that reaches into the very heart of identity and pulls from it the wisdom that can only come from lived experience.
The lyrics to the album’s first single Man Of The Hour question the very idea of rock stardom and where it fits in 2023, recognising a character that we all could, to our own detriment, be or aspire to. Says Carter: “We talk about how rock ’n’ roll will never die, but we never really talk about how maybe the idea of the rock star should die. The whole concept and what it means has always been this glamorised moment, but ultimately when I put that suit on, it didn’t go very well for me.”
“I’m just witnessing the world change so quickly and I’m still trying to come to terms with who I am and what the authentic version of me is. By giving people what I thought they wanted I think I got further and further away from who I actually am.”
Dark Rainbow is the band’s first album of new material since their 2021 album Sticky, the latest in a run of three consecutive U.K. Top 10 albums which also featured the single Go Get A Tattoo. For a band who burned as bright as Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes did when they exploded onto the U.K. punk scene in 2015, nobody could’ve imagined the band they’d become. Since the release of their firecracker first EP Rotten, it’s been a bewildering eight years for Carter and Dean Richardson. They’ve put out four albums, toured with Foo Fighters, headlined festivals, bagged three U.K. Top 10 albums, and featured Tom Morello, Bobby Gillespie and Cassyette on their tunes.
Now the two old friends are taking stock. “Normally we don’t look backwards when making a record, but this has been looking to reach us for a long time,” Richardson explains. “Some songs are old ideas reworked, fresh eyes on something that didn’t quite fit on their other records.” Richardson remembers, “Some of these songs were lost along the way because basically we didn’t really give them the space.”
In contrast to their previous records — which were snapshots of the time and mindset in which they were made — Dark Rainbow was born from self-reflection, memory and gratitude. “I’m just witnessing the world change so quickly and I’m still trying to come to terms with who I am and what the authentic version of me is,” Carter says. “By giving people what I thought they wanted I think I got further and further away from who I actually am, you know? So now, first and foremost, I’m prioritising what I need. Sobriety has been really, really helpful for me.”
The southern gothic balladry and crooning alt-rock that they’ve experimented with on their previous releases is boldly up front on this record. There are a select few ragers on there too, for good measure. It’s not so much a new direction, but Carter and Richardson centering who they really are, mining their souls and unearthing the music that lives within them. “From the start, the ballads always came easy to us,” Richardson remembers. “But at no point did we question whether we should make more of them. Now we are.”
Carter explains that this is the most authentic album he’s ever made, and that came from them doing the work, and really getting to know themselves and each other. “We’ve lived a lot of life together,” Carter says. “A lot has rested on our shoulders. In a creative sense that’s a beautiful thing.”
Dark Rainbow is a bold exploration of who Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes were, who they are and who they can someday be. There’s an undeniable strength in self-acceptance and in the search for your authentic spirit. That strength emanates from them and can be heard in droves on their new album. Carter and Richardson have never been more ready.”
