Tropical Fu*k Storm: Fairyland Codex [Album Review]

Tropical Fuck Storm
Fairyland Codex
Fire Records [2025]

“TFS return with venom, vision, and enough noise to shake the complacent awake—Fairyland Codex is a freak-punk triumph.”

Album Overview: Like a freaky strobing lava lamp in the dystopian dark, Melbourne’s Tropical Fuck Storm return as a beacon of hope. Ever since their debut—A Laughing Death in Meatspace, a Fire Note favorite—they’ve put their own spin on freak-punk, one that never feels dull. Now they return on their new home of Fire Records with their fourth album, Fairyland Codex. While Deep States wasn’t a bad record, it wasn’t the album I wanted. Fairyland Codex feels like a return to form in that cunning TFS way.

Musical Style: Tropical Fuck Storm has always marched to the beat of their own freak. The band continues to explore a sound that falls somewhere in the realm of art-punk. Blurry psychedelics and avant-garde noise collide in a way only they can manage. It’s music that teeters on the edge of being overwhelming but always knows when to pull back with intriguing, interesting grooves.

Evolution of Sound: Just looking at the cover of Fairyland Codex should give you a clue to what’s inside. The style draws heavy inspiration from their debut, A Laughing Death in Meatspace. This new record brings back the urgency, drama, and theatrical edge that made the band stand out in the first place—but now the songs are longer, more of a slow burn with chaos interwoven throughout. Each track feels like it was crafted underwater in a toxic, sloshed, dying coral reef. Vocal harmonies have always been part of TFS, but here they’re elevated. Fiona Kitschin and Erica Dunn really shine—so much so that I find myself preferring the tracks where they take the lead over Liddiard.

Artists with Similar Fire: Of course, Tropical Fuck Storm, sounds like Gareth Liddiard and Fiona Kitschin other project The Drones. There are also similarities to Liddard’s other project Springtime too. Other artists that you can hear in the band’s makeup include King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, the prog undertones of The Mars Volta, Television, Grinderman, and even The B52’s.

Pivotal Tracks: Just like A Laughing Death in Meatspace starts strong, so does Fairyland Codex. “Irukandji Syndrome” stings its poisonous, barbed, doomsday tentacle right into your ears. “Stepping On A Rake” is a beautiful ballad that plays like a calm ocean float looking up at a twilight strewn sky. “Teeth Marché” bounces bass and catchy harmonies together to great effect. The choral lyricism on this album hits so hard. The gentle gleam of strings help carry the title track’s hymn, “A village in hell is waiting for you.” “Dunning Kruger’s Loser Cruiser” has the most fun on the album shouting “I feel good for no bad reason, I feel bad for no good reason!” Final song, “Moscovium” piles on the darkness to great effect shouting, “Murderers, murderers, murderers, murderers!

Lyrical Strength: To quote “Goon Squad” “It’s the golden age of arseholes and the triumph of disgrace.” The band basically plays comedy news ala The Daily Show and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver and turns it into music-if you can’t cry, why not laugh at it. To take a quote from Liddiard directly, “There’s an Anna Akhmatova poem where she talks about how much life sucks and how the world is just a shithole full of arseholes then she says something like, ‘why then do we not despair?’.” The album is really a “love letter” to worldwide hypocrisy.

Final Groove: In my interview with Liddiard he said, “You know rock n’ roll there are so many tropes it’s just so dull and people just keep doing the same old shit. There’s plenty of space, there’s plenty of ways it can still go.” I can’t believe it, but Gareth Liddiard, Fiona Kitschin, Erica Dunn, and Lauren Hammel are still finding those ways. Tropical Fuck Storm is a pirate radio station rallying the ridiculous revolutionaries for the greater good of mankind. Fairyland Codex is the activation for all the sleeper agents who have any respect or dignity. It’s a release like this that shows Tropical Fuck Storm isn’t out for the count. This is the current outside perspective that’s necessary, especially now!

TROPICAL FUCK STORM REVIEW HISTORY
Deep States (2021) / A Laughing Death In Meatspace (2018)

TROPICAL FUCK STORM LINKS
Facebook | Instagram | Bandcamp | Fire Records