i did not know that the consensus here was FOTB is their worst record. It is far and away by a wide margin my favorite.
I'm biased towards MVOTC because I obsessed over it and it got me into them. FOTB has some good/great songs but also many songs I don't find memorable or feel the need to listen to again. Just my opinion of course. I don't think they've overcome Rostam's departure. Not yet anyways.
FOTB is a good record but they're a different band now without Rostam. There are a lot of things I like about them still but I suspect I'll always have a preference for their two records that Rostam had the biggest role in (Contra/MVOTC). And I don't think it's an accident that he was involved in two of my three favorite songs on FOTB either. They should put another post-Rostam record out ASAP tho to prove me wrong! Just saying!!
FOTB Contra VW MVOTC Modern Vampires is the only one I’d call a step down. The best material on it is incredible, but it’s got a higher ratio of great:mid than the others for me. I also am a pretty big Rostam fan and I don’t miss him on FOTB at all. Don’t think I’d even realize he was gone if I didn’t know
My ranking is the exact reverse of this lol For me, MV is clearly 1, FOTB is clearly 4, and s/t and Contra are interchangeable at 2 and 3
Kinda hard to rank these guys. Solid discography. Only sure that VW is my favorite and Contra is their weakest, but it'd prob shake out like this for me: VW FOTB MVOTC Contra
The self titled is the clear weak link. The other 3 it just depends on the day which one is my favorite.
None of them are bad really IMO. I do think the S/T is weakest, though there are still some killer songs and ideas on that album. FOTB is a sick record too, a cool change of pace even though I like the Rostam stuff most. I bet next album they have a more realized sound since it’s been a few years since the line-up change.
Opinions are opinions and it is a good record but also it’s inconceivable to me that FOTB could be in the top half of any rankings. But it almost feels inevitable that one day I too will come around and declare it their secret masterpiece.