FACS Release “Wish Defense,” The Final Album Engineered By Steve Albini

The duality of “man” is a subject that has been explored in art for centuries, from writings of the Bible to Descartes, all the way up to filmmakers like Lynch, Cronenberg, and Carpenter. Who is your “true self” and what do they want?

With their sixth studio album Wish Defense (out today on Trouble In Mind Records), Chicago trio FACS take a good, long look in the mirror to face themselves.  FACS‘ Brian Case notes that the album’s lyrical content revolves around doppelgängers or “doubles”, tackling the idea of facing yourself and observing your ideas and motivations.

Wish Defense is also the last album engineered by Steve Albini. Two days were recorded at Electrical Audio in early May of 2024 before Steve’s untimely passing, with renowned engineer and friend Sanford Parker stepping in to finish the session 24 hours later, tracking the last bits of vocals and overdubs. Longtime collaborator John Congleton mixed the album as Albini would have, in Electrical Audio’s A room, off the tape, using Albini’s notes about the session.

On Wish Defense, the return of FACS original member Jonathan Van Herik— who stepped away from the group just before their debut album Negative Houses was released, and replacing longtime bassist Alianna Kalaba— brings renewed vigor and a marked angularity from the band’s more recent output. The songs still hit hard, but the approach is sideways; the roles have changed since Van Herik’s original tenure and his previous time with Case and powerhouse drummer Noah Leger in Disappears; now on bass, Van Herik was originally the group’s guitar player and features on the debut, while current guitarist Brian Case played bass. This role reversal has helped the band’s dynamic, offering up a different musical perspective than before, now revisiting the trio’s long-going collaboration with some distance and time.

See FACS on tour in Europe this month and in select markets in North America in April.

FACS on tour:

Feb. 07  Den Haag, NL – Grauzone Fest
Feb. 08  Amsterdam, NL – OCCII
Feb. 09  Hamburg, DE – Ms Stubnitz Boat
Feb. 10  Berlin, DE – Neue Zukunft
Feb. 11  Brussels, BE – Magazine 4
Feb. 12  Luxembourg, LUX – Rotondes 
Feb. 13  Metz, FR – Trinitaires
Feb. 14  Lyon, FR – Periscope
Feb. 15  Nïmes, FR – Paloma
Feb. 16  Marseille, FR – Emma Vortex
Feb. 18  Savona, IT – Raindogs
Feb. 19  Grenoble, FR – Le Ciel
Feb. 20  Zürich, CH – Ziegel Oh Lac
Feb. 21  Trier, DE – Mergener Hof Trier
Feb. 22  Liege, BE – Jaune Orange

Apr. 07  Washington, DC – Songbyrd
Apr. 08  Philadelphia, PA – Johnny Brenda’s
Apr. 09  Ridgewood, NY – TV Eye
Apr. 10  Medford, MA – Deep Cuts
Apr. 11  Montreal, QC – Quai des Brumes
Apr. 12  Toronto, ON – Dance Cave
Apr. 13  Grand Rapids, MI – Pyramid Scheme
Apr. 17  Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall

Wish Defense, cover art: