More than any other major punk band of their time, Fucked Up have no use for the accepted musical conventions of punk. It’s not that they don’t like stuff fast and loud, just that they see no need to limit themselves to Ramones-style downstroke riffing and a 4/4 time signature. Fucked Up have frequently used their singles as a medium for their more experimental pieces, and Year of the Snake, the eighth installment in what was meant to be their seven-part Zodiac series, is another release in this great tradition.
The title cut runs just under 24 minutes, beginning with an opening salvo of flutes, feedback, and drums, kicking into a ferocious jam that splits the difference between hard rock and vintage punk, and then fading into a long, seemingly…
…improvised coda where the musicians generate drifting clouds of acoustic and electric sounds. Fucked Up haven’t exactly made it a secret that they have a fondness for prog rock, and the multiple sounds and ideas that define the piece from the eight-minute mark onward certainly sound thoughtful and arty, even though they dodge the bullet of becoming pretentious. The single also includes “Passacaglia,” an instrumental piece that’s more concise than “Year of the Snake” but nearly as adventurous, despite being dominated by electric guitars, and the closing remix of “Year of the Snake” throws the original track’s elements into a sharp relief against a labyrinth of beats and loops.
Like most of the Zodiac series singles, Year of the Snake is for Fucked Up’s most committed and open-minded fans, though if the material is esoteric, it’s performed with the same level of intelligence and ferocious commitment that has always been their hallmark.