‘Fatty Tissue Thorn’ first release from sophomore effort by Maine’s Fonfon Ru

Portland-based post-punk band Fonfon Ru has released “Fatty Tissue Thorn,” the single and video from their sophomore album “Collapse of the Silver Bridge,” which comes out April 15. Courtesy photo

Portland-based post-punk band Fonfon Ru has released “Fatty Tissue Thorn,” the single and video from their sophomore album “Collapse of the Silver Bridge,” which comes out April 15.

After a significant medical issue in 2019, FonFon Ru guitar player and singer Harry James turned their experience into “Fatty Tissue Thorn,” a sonic exploration of the balance between health-related anxiety and self-discovery. Three years later, the song’s tongue-in-cheek, hypochondriacal look at the mental spirals associated with health scares feels even more relevant against the backdrop of the pandemic.

Directed by drummer Wes Sterrs, the video is a surreal, technicolor fever dream. With help from director of photography Jeff Griecci, production designer Mariah Bergeron, and special effects artist Mazie Bartels-Biswell, FonFon Ru stitches together a gnarly nosedive into blood, guts, and lollipops.

Uproxx calls Fonfon Ru “aggressive yet precise, a tribute to what made the rock of yesterday so appealing and what could make the rock of tomorrow worthwhile.”

Founded in 2018 by guitarist/vocalist Harry James, bassist Jimi Ledue, drummer Wes Sterrs, and session guitarist Cormac Brown, FonFon Ru’s post-punk explores anxiety and modern dismay while arising from a desire for a loving, caring world. Resplendent in guillotine earrings and cowboy boots, FonFon Ru seeks to smash binary boundaries, encourage kindness, and embrace the full spectrum of identity.