There have been many people who have played a role in launching Faith No More into a global sensation throughout the decades, but one name continues to pop up when talking about the Bay Area band's breakthrough LP, The Real Thing: producer Matt Wallace.
Wallace—who also produced subsequent FNM albums, including their magnum opus Angel Dust—recently linked up with Gibson TV to share anecdotes about his time producing The Real Thing alongside the band. You can check out that video above.
After listening to standout track "Falling to Pieces," Wallace says, "To me, that was the best blend of really muscular guitars, really melodic keyboard parts, and it's also kinda funky…. If I were King of the Universe, I'd probably have a whole album like that." Wallace also hypothesized on the track's meaning, saying "this is one of the more honest lyrics on the album.
"I haven't asked Mike [Patton, vocalist] about this, but I'm pretty sure it's about the fact that he's torn between this band Mr. Bungle and this band Faith No More, and this whole 'indecision' [in the lyric] is the fact that he's stuck between two places."
Wallace also takes some time to reminisce about former FNM guitarist Jim Martin. "Jim is a very, very unique individual, but one thing I want to say about him is that he brought the muscle to the band, which I think the band really, truly needed. I think the weight and the heft that he brought balanced out a band that could have easily teetered into pop, or some other kind of music, but he really brought this weight that was essential."
I think these short documentaries are so worth watching, because it's not often you can get an accessible, layman's tutorial in how classic albums are made. So, don't miss this one, folks—it's a winner!
