PRESS

"German musical wunderkind Alexander Donat is back with this fast ‘n’ furiously fun project that thematically deals with the joys and frustrations of a growing family. Donat writes about what he knows: the balancing act of raising two young daughters (7 and 9 years old). His bemused parental perspective is displayed in sweet and refreshing lyrics about taking a family vacation, school-time, and preadolescent moodiness. High-energy tracks are a dazzling clash of garage/punk rock and metal, with one brooding post-punk tune and two retro-vibed numbers. Where else could you hear a song about losing a tooth set against discordant guitar grind (spastically antic “Pull It Out!”) or the exhilarating blastbeats of “Way Up North” colliding with charming descriptions of ice cream, roller coasters, and seashells at the beach?!" - Big Takeover Magazine (USA)

"It sounds like this band is ready to tour and take over the squatter venues of the European underground. I don’t know if that might ever happen, but when it does Weirdo Shrine will be present in the pit! On this album he sounds like a psychedelic rock band, a schizophrenic anarcho punk band, and an artsy electro pop unit all at once. If you didn’t know, you would never have expected it all to be the work of just one guy in his bedroom. The album sounds bigger and more extensive than that." - Weirdo Shrine (NED)

"Flabbergasting stroke! My kind of hullabaloo. Get ready to be puzzled. [...] Take a deep breath before you start this supersonic head-over-heels spunk missile up. You will need a lot of oxygen to follow this Blitzkrieg speedball going at a razzle-dazzle, head-twisting pace. Way Up North races from the get-go. No brakes, no breaks, no mistakes. Maniacal guitars and the avid bravado vocals of the Berliner punk rush unstoppably toward an orgasmic climax. Breakneck, Aflame, and euphoric." - Turn Up The Volume (BEL)

"Donat produces another lesson in how to write hooks that grab you and don’t let go. [...] It’s amazing how much this guy can cram into three minutes. [...] Donat has really changed up his modus operandi and it’s gloriously successful. [...] What hasn’t changed is the unbridled joy in each and every track. Long may that continue. [...] First impressions are that Donat is going harder at these tunes than ever before. He uses the scuzziest, scratchiest guitar tones whilst the drums are going hell for leather. The dreamy notes are left to the vocals. Put together, it’s that signature uplifting FCC feel but delivered in a totally new medium. [...] Each time I reach the end I always feel exhausted, energised and elated. That for me is a Fir Cone Children album in a nutshell." - Static Sounds Club (UK)

"If you want a 3 letter review for this album, here you go: WTF. If you prefer a one word review: weird. This album is jaw-droppingly weird. There is no singular genre for this, just a load of different ones, jumbled up to make a really strange, yet thorougly enjoyable album. [...] The album has a mad Punky/Garage Rock vibe, like a child on too many E numbers ... so you get small lows and then euphoric highs, throw in the lo-fi sound and a very happy, poppy edge and you end up with Fir Cone Children. It's really hard trying to explain a mad as a box of frogs album that goes against most production values and fires off at a million targets a minute ... and yet it's such a bloody good listen, it's just batshit crazy, but so addictive, because in amongst all of the madness, it's really catchy, like the Beach Boys on every drug of the planet." - Smorg (UK)

"Today There's No Tomorrow is a ripper, front to back. Fuzzy noisey psychy dreamy weirdo-pop that vocally, sonically, and spiritually reminds me of Andy Anderson's work in Proto Idiot/Freak Genes, which is high praise indeed because I think Anderson hangs the moon when it comes to who's doing what, rock'n'roll-wise." - Clean Nice Quiet (USA)

“Charmingly bonkers, cracking good stuff, frantic and vibrant, lovely, ethereal and off-kilter at the same time, darned fine stuff, magnificent, well done!” – Loose Canon on 6 Towns Radio (UK)

"8/10 - Alexander Donat really parties hard. Dreampunk, garage rock, blackgaze, crushed, shaken well and freshly mixed, combined into a surprisingly catchy and mostly cheerful chaos." - Ox-Fanzine (GER)

"He’s translated the wonder and openheartedness of childhood into 3-minute blasts of unexpected discovery and drags us along to survey the resulting wreckage. [...] Cacophonous impulses [...] manic gleefulness [...] Fuzzed-up garage rock tones morph into alt-rock eruptions before post-punk angularities arise and fade from view. Throughout the album, he never loses sight of the underlying melodic associations that make these assorted sounds stick in our heads for days on end. At times disorienting and prone to streaks of emotional volatility, these songs provide instant gratification for those looking for something off the beaten path, a series of raucous revelations handed down by someone lettered in their complex divinities." - Beats Per Minute (USA)

"Fir Cone Children seems to add something new to their sound every time I hear them. On the whole, this cassette has elements of twee within it. [...] While the music on here seems to be melodic, it isn't afraid to rock and I really enjoy that. [...] Between telling your own stories / digging up your own memories through these lyrics, the mood on this cassette generally stays upbeat. It's melodic, but it just feels like a lot of fun - like music you'd listen to when you're in a good mood or want to be. It also just seems like the music of Fir Cone Children keeps getting better and better." - Raised By Cassettes (USA)

"All focused on the raw, natural sound of life. Alexander clearly enjoys the Fir Cone Children project. Get out of the toddler group and into the colourful, anarchic world of children. Off-key, loud, noisy tones, ADHD punk and strummed noise rock with hit-and-run sequences ("Way Up North") like in the phase of defiance. Wonderfully exhilarated, happy and angry. Alexander strums and quacks like a SESAME STREET character. [T]here are many places that illustrate the unbridled, exuberant positive attitude towards life. Fast, loud, jumpy elements and sequences that capture the fooling around, jumping, and having fun." - Underdog Fanzine (GER)

"Incredibly playful [...] sometimes very stressful, very special [...] nervous, hectic, fussy. [...] A cool project. [...] If you know what it's about, it's more accessible [...] because children are fickle minds. Pretty great stuff." - Rants Raves Reviews (GER)

"Goes for the extreme on each of these cool songs. [...] Today There's No Tomorrow features ten little gems that follow each other in rapid succession. There is hardly time to catch your breath. We fly from one dreamy song to another psychedelic trip full of noise and shoegaze. He never lets noise take the upper hand, which makes it generally very melodic. [...] The project has a very captivating sound of its own. Fir Cone Children is definitely a band, erm, project to discover." - Luminous Dash (BEL)

"Mangy lo-fi punk, thick layers of shoegaze" - Visions (GER)

"Disorienting, audacious, noisy, joyful, chaotic and playful, Alexander Leonard Donat presents snippets, stories, impressions and love songs to his kids as Fir Cone Children. Do yourself a favor and pick up the new album Today There's No Tomorrow and bring some of that innocence and wonder back into your daily lives, 3 minutes at a time." - Bret Miller, Eardrum Buzz Radio (USA)

"Fierce, reckless and anthemic loud volumes brimming with liberating urgency and ragged defiance, through frantic drum beats, punchy basslines, abrasive edgy double guitar distortion and screamed polyharmonies, overflowing in eight straightforward high emotional blasts blurred by existential angst." - White Light / White Heat (ITA)

"Garage rock glee, dreampunk aggressiveness, [with an] ingenious knack for melody and vocal layering [...] rough and tumble as the youth it seems to emulate. The songs written in the world of Fir Cone Children are all coming from the perspective of Alex’ children (two girls, 7 and 9). The buoyancy and hyper optimism makes perfect sense when you know the inspiration for Fir Cone Children." - Complex Distractions (USA)

"11/15 - If "Today There's No Tomorrow" can be taken as a motto, then Fir Cone Children has certainly succeeded in channeling this "fuck it" attitude into music. The somewhat snottier, or at least cheeky energy can really do something. [...] Every note on "Today There's No Tomorrow" sounds stubborn, quirky and sometimes strange, and yet nothing seems artificial or deliberately forced. As a result of this authenticity, the music keeps playing. [...] The music is loud, the music is wild, the music is exhausting. But it is also fascinating in its very own way." - musikreviews.de (GER)

"This is probably the most fast-paced, energetic track you’ll hear this week and despite being frantic/chaotic (for the most part anyway), the track has catchy moments too." - Mix It All Up (UK)

"Hyper rock" - Cycles Per Second (USA)