‘F.E.A.R.’ is the first single from Ian Brown's third solo album, Music of the Spheres. Released on 17th Sept. 2001 - 19 years ago today. The track placed No.13 on the UK Singles Chart and was both a commercial and critical success.
For those who don’t already know, Ian Brown is the ex-frontman of the legendary Mancunian alt-rock band The Stone Roses. After their breakup in 1996, Ian went solo and released his first album Unfinished Monkey Business in 1998. For his third studio album, Music of the Spheres, Brown sought outside production help for the first time. He also toured the US for the first time as a solo artist in support of the album.
The main track off Music of the Spheres is ‘F.E.A.R’. Having been used to the DIY techniques of the 80s and 90s, things had changed by 2001. Brown clocked on to the change allowing him to simply roll with it, he hired songwriter and producer Dave McCracken to help collaborate with him on the album instead of doing it all by himself like his previous work. However, besides getting some help on the music front, F.E.A.R also became Brown’s directorial debut. It featured footage of the singer slowly riding a bicycle through the busy streets of Soho and Chinatown in London, which was then reversed to give the impression of being ridden backwards. The route followed was from Berwick Street to Gerrard Street.
F.E.A.R was such a success because it displayed Brown’s capabilities and talents as a songwriter - proving his intricate genius. The song would also go on to spell F.E.A.R in every stanza. For example, “[F]or [E]veryman [A] [R]eligion” / “ [F]or [E]verything [A] [R]eason” - the whole song continues in this manner, and each verse forms the acrostic "F.E.A.R."
“Fantastic expectations, amazing revelations. Finding everything and realizing, for everything a reason.”
In an interview with Clash Magazine, Brown indicated that a main influence for ‘F.E.A.R.’ was The Autobiography of Malcolm X, which preached the study of etymology, so that one could have control over people through the use of language."I just found it a better way to amuse myself in a hotel room than watching the porn channel," Brown recalls. Brown then proceeded to create hundreds of mnemonics from the word "fear".
The lyrical genius that is Ian Brown never ceases to amaze me - he just makes you think on that extra level, every time. Although he’s had some great solo tunes such as, ‘My Star’ (1998), ‘Dolphins Were Monkeys’(1999) and ‘Stellify’ (2009) - F.E.A.R is definitely his best (solo track) so far. Happy anniversary to F.E.A.R - 19 years old today! What a record.
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