Unbreakable Hearts: 9 Years After the City Fell to Dust...

“Your music’s never gone anywhere, and that’s the strength of it.”

A sentence full of love from Theo (27) who has been a fan of FVK since 2012, while talking about FVK’s return last year, after breaking up in 2016. It’s true! Six years away, now they’re back touring the towns and dominating English music festivals as if it had never happened.

With their rise from the ashes, it’s only fair to pay tribute to the 9th anniversary of Unbreakable Hearts.

Fearless Vampire Killers at Corporation, Sheffield. 01/04/2023.

Unbreakable Hearts is a 17-track concept album, split into four segments, ‘exile, loss, recovery and war’. It is FVK’s second album, and arguably one of the most artistic approaches to an album, taking months to perfect and create a Gothic world of betrayal and lust. The mysterious world of ‘Grandomina’ is not limited to Fearless Vampire Killers’ lyrics, but (as it stands), a three-book series, music videos, and once upon a time... Their own social media website, Obsidian Bond. The books, written by frontman Laurence Beveridge, continue now to means a lot to their fans.

“As well as the music, you’ve got the books and the lore, and it’s like – ‘look at this little world we created’!” Enthused Theo, “The fact that Laurence has published multiple books, as well as being in a band – love that. That’s pretty... they’ve achieved so much.”

How to describe the sound of Unbreakable Hearts? It ranges from soft, solemn songs like ‘Brave the Night’ to huge, theatrical pieces such as Exploding Heart Disorder, to dance-bops like Neon in the Dance Halls. It’s Gothic, with classic rock undertones and, at times, infused with pop. According to Theo, it’s a “My Chemical Romance-style concept album, like they were trying to create their Black Parade album, which told the story Laurence wanted to tell. I would compare it to Danger Days, with the concept, visuals – an audio theatre show.”

Interestingly, Kieran (22) who’s been an FVK fan for ten years, would say, “Musical drama, I guess, is the best way I can describe it. Obviously, it’s a concept album, so there’s going to be a storyline to it, but it feels like there are so many songs, if not the whole album, that are kind of... masterpieces in their own right.”

Kieran explained how different songs, such as ‘Say What You Want From Me’ and ‘City Falls to Dust’, are so unique, and tell their own story – and yet, all work together. Then finishes the description by calling Unbreakable Hearts “audio drama”. Kieran also continued to compare FVK to My Chemical Romance, in particularly comparing it to ‘Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge’, My Chemical Romance’s second album – and compared each album’s final songs - ‘I Never Told You What I Did for a Living’ and ‘City Falls to Dust’.

“If the ending part of an album nails [an emotional ending] on the head, then the entire album comes together.” - Kieran.

Leading up to the release of Unbreakable Hearts, Fearless Vampire Killers published ‘Obsidian Bond’ - a social network for their fans.  It had opportunities to share artwork, to learn their songs, to read extra mini stories about Grandomina, and interact with the band through livestreams and Q&As. It was appreciated by all, especially Kieran – who now didn’t have to spend hours searching through videos and Tabs.com to find how to play FVK songs, and describes the site as “Facebook meets Patreon, but it’s a lot more personal” and a “genius move” on FVK’s part.

Obsidian Bond is still loved, and dearly missed, by Theo today,

“I still wear my Obsidian Bond wristband,” he says, “and I still have my lanyard from the Q&As.”

As an early release-show/Halloween show, Fearless Vampire Killers advertised ‘The Cabaret of the Damned’. FVK are known for their ‘Halloween parties’ where fans can dress up and rock out. The Cabaret of Damned was absolutely no exception!

When asked if they attended, Theo said, “No! It was the one show I wish I went to.” But Kieran was lucky enough to attend and loved every single moment of it. Making it extra special, their next show was also at The Dome in London – and it was FVK’s reunion show, 2nd September 2022.

What makes Fearless Vampire Killers special, especially in their shows, is their humanity. “You can see they are just people,” explains Kieran, while discussing a speech made by Laurence at the reunion show, “When they talk about working 9-5s, it humanises them. There will always be the divide between fan and artist, but it’s nice to have someone you looked up to talk like that.” He goes on to explain how nice it is for them to create a space that instantly feels safe and inclusive.

Which is another view shared by Theo, who talked about how he has a level of friendship with the members of Fearless Vampire Killers, just by attending the show and talking regularly. He even claimed to have inspired the look of co-frontman Kier Kemp, as they shared red hair and smudged eyeliner.

“He stole my look!” Claims Theo, while allowing me to use this photograph.

As a band so loved by everyone who listens, it came to a shock to fans when they announced they were breaking up in 2016. Kieran expressed how “it came out of nowhere”, and Theo telling me the story of him coming home for university and just crying.

January 2022, an ‘artist’ came along called ‘After the Flames’ who was advertised “for fans of FVK”. Though Kieran admits he was oblivious to all the sneakiness, most FVK fans were quick to catch on.

“I messaged Drew, and he didn’t reply, that’s how I knew something was up,” claims Theo. If the artwork which resembled that of Shane Sumner, the guitarist of FVK, didn’t give it away – the iconic FVK fang-logo in the background definitely did!

“Top-tier marketing! Sneaky, funny – one of the best ways to come back!” - Theo. 

As we celebrate the anniversary of Unbreakable Hearts, Fearless Vampire Killers are currently teasing new music. Fans all around are excited to hear what’s to come next for their favourite niche band. If their returning single ‘Something Terminal/Delicate’ is something to reference, then what’s to come... is going to be good.