I'd never been to Guilfest before, and I hadn't intended to this year. However, I won weekend tickets and found myself camped in a field going through the program and looking for bands that I recognised. Casting its net wide, Guilfest has a very, very varied line up. Being on crutches due to a ligament injury I knew I may not make it through the weekend, so I was determined to enjoy as much as I could before it all got too much.
The first band that we watched were McCavitie's Cat [7] on the main stage, who are a kind of bluegrass-skiffley sort of band. not normally my thing, but some ridiculous hats and a good sense of humour led me to enjoy them quite a bit.
Tragedy: A heavy metal tribute to the Bee Gees [8] followed, and they do exactly what their name suggests. In silver spandex costumes, with a great stage presence, they are exactly what the Bee Gees would have been if they'd been into Black Sabbath. Fantastic fun, although I can imagine it would get a bit wearing if they played for more than about 45 minutes.
The first band I ever saw live was the Wildhearts, so it's fitting that Ginger [8] was the 400th band that I've seen. It was odd seeing him play, but not hearing any Wildhearts tracks. His solo material isn't a million times removed though, and is thoroughly enjoyable in its own right. Despite an apathetic crowd, Ginger put in a good set, but it did leave me wanting to watch the Wildhearts.
Next, The Stranglers [10]. I've always liked them, but it had never occurred to me to see them live before. To my surprise, they put in what was probably the best performance that I saw all weekend, playing all of their hits. The most amazing thing was how fresh they sounded, almost as if they were a band just starting out. Truly remarkable.
It was a hard act to follow, but Motorhead [9] have decades of experience doing just that. It would be easy for them to just turn out a workman-like performance at this stage of their career, playing the classics and collecting the paycheck. Thankfully, after opening with Iron Fist they played a lot of more obscure songs, before rounding out the set and encore with the likes of Overkill, Bomber and, of course, Ace Of Spades. A large part of the audience seemed to be there just for them, and they didn't disappoint.
After the bands there were various tents filled with such delights as a barn dance and a 70's disco. It was back to the tent for me though, so that I might stand a chance of making it through the next day.
After a trip into Guilford itself to have breakfast and get more beer, we returned to catch the end of the Dolly Rockers [6] on the main stage. Billed as a girl band with attitude, they lacked any kind of edge. We then made our way over to the Rock Sound cave and caught the end of Pint Shot Riot [6], who were perfectly inoffensive, although it would appear that they would like to be Feeder when they grow up.
After a trip back to the tent for beer, we returned to the main stage and caught the start of Toploader [2]. Truly abysmal, I had forgotten just how bad a band they are. For one terrible moment it looked as if we would be trapped for the whole set, but we managed to escape, making our way to the Rock Sound cave where Eureka Machines [7] were playing an enjoyable set, which culminated in a cover of 'Wonderful World', quite daring for a pop punk band given that Joey Ramone made it his. They did it well, and could well be a band to watch.
We stayed in the tent for Laika Dog [8], best known for having Tony Wright from Terrorvision in the band. They wouldn't have been out of place in the 90's, and would probably have been quite bug had they been around at the time. As it is, they sounded quite dated. They did it well though.
Eddie Reader [7] was next up on the second stage. Her voice is incredible, and I would have liked to have stayed, but I was back off to the Rock Sound cave to catch last minute additions Fei Comodo [9]. In theory, I shouldn't like them. They're a poppy metalcore band with far too much energy, but they know how to work a crowd and got the best reaction that I saw all weekend, even managing a wall of death, much to the bemusement of the security. A few songs were flabby, but they have huge potential.
We stayed in the tent for Devil Sold His Soul [8], who are a very competent post-hardcore band. They seemed to lack something, although it could just have been having to follow Fei Comodo that did it. Unfortunately, they turned out to be the last band that I saw. I had intended to stick around for Kylesa, but the pain in my knee coupled with the horrific weather that was making it impossible to manoeuvre my crutches meant that I went home early.
It was a good weekend, and it was a shame I had to leave. Fortunately it's not the last festival that I have planned for this summer.
Wednesday, 15 July 2009
Thursday, 9 July 2009
That festival feeling...
I'm off to Guilfest tomorrow, for a completely unplanned start to the summer festival season.I've won tickets, you see, and will be able to haul myself around on my crutches to watch Motorhead, Kylesa and Laika Dog free of charge, which is a good price by anyone's standards. This gives me an excuse to talk festivals again, and specifically Sonisphere.
Machine head have pulled out of Sonisphere, citing the organisers moving their slot around to make way for Limp Bizkit. Sonisphere have responded by pretty much blaming Machine Head for not accepting a different slot that was offered to them. The fans have been somewhat divided on the matter, blaming both parties and even Limp Bizit.
Looking at it from the outside it appears that both parties have behaved unprofessionally by either breaching contract, in Sonisphere's case; or stubbornly refusing to be accommodating and then airing their dirty laundry in Machine Head's case. So who has come out of this worse?
Machine Head have always had a reputation for being a fan-oriented band, and that reputation has taken a knock in many peoples eyes. However, they have a dedicated fan base and, ironically, Limp Bizkit prove that pulling out of a major festival can be forgiven with time.
Sonisphere on the other hand... I've already voiced my concerns about the festival, and this adds to it. While the bands pulling out may not be the fault of the organisers, it does leave them with a headache. Just three weeks from the festival the main stage bands have yet to be fully announced, and it's start to look like the promised twelve main stage bands may be cut back to ten, simply because of the lack of time. The festival didn't look selling out before this, mainly due to the cost being too high for a two day festival, and this won't help the cause. Unless some big announcements are made in the next week there won't be a huge spike in sales before the event.
While the festival is unlikely to make a huge loss, it's future seems to be questionable. Sonisphere hasn't sold out in any of the other countries that it's been held in, with the high cost of tickets being cited again, and bands have even failed to turn up with no replacement being provided in one case. The decision to stretch the festival out to two days in the UK, where there are a plethora of multi-day festivals, is starting to look questionable at best.
Will Sonisphere happen next year? Most likely. I'd imagine that licenses will already have been sought to hold it again next year. It will have to change the way it operates in the next year though, or it will run the very real risk of not being able to attract suitable headliners. As it stands at the moment, Download has seen off the challenge of the newcomer and has come out of it stronger than before. Sonisphere needs a drastic rethink if it is to mount a true challenge next year.
As mentioned at the start of this piece, I'm off to Guilfest, which is a pretty mixed bag this year. I'll have reviews of the festival up next week.
Machine head have pulled out of Sonisphere, citing the organisers moving their slot around to make way for Limp Bizkit. Sonisphere have responded by pretty much blaming Machine Head for not accepting a different slot that was offered to them. The fans have been somewhat divided on the matter, blaming both parties and even Limp Bizit.
Looking at it from the outside it appears that both parties have behaved unprofessionally by either breaching contract, in Sonisphere's case; or stubbornly refusing to be accommodating and then airing their dirty laundry in Machine Head's case. So who has come out of this worse?
Machine Head have always had a reputation for being a fan-oriented band, and that reputation has taken a knock in many peoples eyes. However, they have a dedicated fan base and, ironically, Limp Bizkit prove that pulling out of a major festival can be forgiven with time.
Sonisphere on the other hand... I've already voiced my concerns about the festival, and this adds to it. While the bands pulling out may not be the fault of the organisers, it does leave them with a headache. Just three weeks from the festival the main stage bands have yet to be fully announced, and it's start to look like the promised twelve main stage bands may be cut back to ten, simply because of the lack of time. The festival didn't look selling out before this, mainly due to the cost being too high for a two day festival, and this won't help the cause. Unless some big announcements are made in the next week there won't be a huge spike in sales before the event.
While the festival is unlikely to make a huge loss, it's future seems to be questionable. Sonisphere hasn't sold out in any of the other countries that it's been held in, with the high cost of tickets being cited again, and bands have even failed to turn up with no replacement being provided in one case. The decision to stretch the festival out to two days in the UK, where there are a plethora of multi-day festivals, is starting to look questionable at best.
Will Sonisphere happen next year? Most likely. I'd imagine that licenses will already have been sought to hold it again next year. It will have to change the way it operates in the next year though, or it will run the very real risk of not being able to attract suitable headliners. As it stands at the moment, Download has seen off the challenge of the newcomer and has come out of it stronger than before. Sonisphere needs a drastic rethink if it is to mount a true challenge next year.
As mentioned at the start of this piece, I'm off to Guilfest, which is a pretty mixed bag this year. I'll have reviews of the festival up next week.
Wednesday, 1 July 2009
Festivals
I've been thinking about festivals a lot lately, what with festival season just starting. I did a quick trawl of the Internet to see what my options are, and I'm amazed by just how many festivals there in this country. Sadly, having a lot of festivals means that there tends to be a lot of repetition in the line ups.
I started going to festivals in 1998, going to the Ozzfest and Reading that year, both of which actually turned out to be quite significant in one way or another. The Ozzfest was the first to happen in the UK, proving the viability of heavier festivals in the wake of the death of Monsters of Rock. The heavier line up and multi stage format set the format for the hard rock/metal festivals to come, to the point that this years Sonisphere is using its layout for the main stage/second stage change overs.
Reading was significant in two ways. The first was that it was the last Reading festival to be solely that. Leeds was introduced the following year, aping the V festival format. The other was that it absorbed the Phoenix festival, which was cancelled on relatively short notice as the tickets just weren't selling. Reading didn't sell out either - I bought my ticket to the festival the week before.
Nowadays it's hard to imagine a festival collapsing, which shows the change that has taken place. Reading/Leeds and the V festivals always sell out on the day tickets are released, and the other festivals on the circuit do more than well enough to be enable their survival.
While this is good in some ways, it has had a negative impact as well. If you were to compare the line ups of the larger festivals, you would fine that there is a much higher number of bands playing more than one of them. In many cases the concept of an exclusive headliner has gone out of the window as well.
Take, for example, the metal festivals this year. So far we've had Hammerfest and Download. We've still yet to have Sonisphere, Bloodstock or Hard Rock Hell. Even taking Hammerfest and HRH out of the equation due to them falling out side of the festival season, that leaves three multi day festivals, vying for customers in a market that has traditionally only sorted one.
Sonisphere took of the headliners that would likely have gone to Download in other years, and in both cases they have headlined Download multiple times. This made Download get creative to be able to compete, and they picked smaller bands and concentrated on the strength of the overall line up. This line up has since been seen as one of the best in recent years.
Sonisphere has struggled, it appears, both with bands and ticket sales. The lineup is very safe and the tickets are expensive. Couple that with the most recent 'big' announcement being Limp Bizkit, a band that reformed to play Download, and they're looking out of ideas. Ticket sales have been slow, and while that could in part be down to how expensive they are, it seems that Downloads more creative line up combined with the festivals history had won out.
Bloodstock, on the other hand, is a much smaller, more specialist affair. It has the ethos of a European festival, which gives it at less diverse line up than the other two but that in turn draws people in. The majority of the bands are exclusive to the festival, which means that there will be little to no crossover with other festivals, which is how it used to be.
Sonisphere seems to be proving that festivals are hitting saturation point. It's no longer enough to throw together a half decent line up and hope for the best. With the bands playing more than one festival, the more creative line ups are winning out.
I started going to festivals in 1998, going to the Ozzfest and Reading that year, both of which actually turned out to be quite significant in one way or another. The Ozzfest was the first to happen in the UK, proving the viability of heavier festivals in the wake of the death of Monsters of Rock. The heavier line up and multi stage format set the format for the hard rock/metal festivals to come, to the point that this years Sonisphere is using its layout for the main stage/second stage change overs.
Reading was significant in two ways. The first was that it was the last Reading festival to be solely that. Leeds was introduced the following year, aping the V festival format. The other was that it absorbed the Phoenix festival, which was cancelled on relatively short notice as the tickets just weren't selling. Reading didn't sell out either - I bought my ticket to the festival the week before.
Nowadays it's hard to imagine a festival collapsing, which shows the change that has taken place. Reading/Leeds and the V festivals always sell out on the day tickets are released, and the other festivals on the circuit do more than well enough to be enable their survival.
While this is good in some ways, it has had a negative impact as well. If you were to compare the line ups of the larger festivals, you would fine that there is a much higher number of bands playing more than one of them. In many cases the concept of an exclusive headliner has gone out of the window as well.
Take, for example, the metal festivals this year. So far we've had Hammerfest and Download. We've still yet to have Sonisphere, Bloodstock or Hard Rock Hell. Even taking Hammerfest and HRH out of the equation due to them falling out side of the festival season, that leaves three multi day festivals, vying for customers in a market that has traditionally only sorted one.
Sonisphere took of the headliners that would likely have gone to Download in other years, and in both cases they have headlined Download multiple times. This made Download get creative to be able to compete, and they picked smaller bands and concentrated on the strength of the overall line up. This line up has since been seen as one of the best in recent years.
Sonisphere has struggled, it appears, both with bands and ticket sales. The lineup is very safe and the tickets are expensive. Couple that with the most recent 'big' announcement being Limp Bizkit, a band that reformed to play Download, and they're looking out of ideas. Ticket sales have been slow, and while that could in part be down to how expensive they are, it seems that Downloads more creative line up combined with the festivals history had won out.
Bloodstock, on the other hand, is a much smaller, more specialist affair. It has the ethos of a European festival, which gives it at less diverse line up than the other two but that in turn draws people in. The majority of the bands are exclusive to the festival, which means that there will be little to no crossover with other festivals, which is how it used to be.
Sonisphere seems to be proving that festivals are hitting saturation point. It's no longer enough to throw together a half decent line up and hope for the best. With the bands playing more than one festival, the more creative line ups are winning out.
Friday, 26 June 2009
Michael Jackson
I thought I'd get in on the eulogising too. I used to be a huge Michael Jackson fan back in the '80's. I remember seeing the Thriller video when it was released - my uncle went and rented it so we could watch it, and I hid behind the sofa because it scared me. For my best friends birthday one year, we went to see Moonwalker at the cinema, and I remember getting Dangerous on vinyl one Xmas, alongside Iron Maiden's No Prayer For The Dying. I'm not going to be alone in having memories like this.
Regardless of what music you like, even if you're the most kvlt black metaller, if you grew up in the '70's, '80's or '90's, Michael Jackson's music will have touched you in some way. It was like a security blanket, the one thing that would always be there. I don't think I ever considered that he would die so young, and not on the eve of making a comeback.
The demonisation of Michael Jackson the man has taken some of the sheen off of his career, perhaps deservedly, perhaps not. As a child star he was never going to have a normal life, and it has been well documented how that could easily have contributed to his problems later in life.
Regardless of what people thought of him in the end, whether you loved him or hated him, he was a one of a kind pop star. The first true pop star of the video age, the first to suffer the trial by media that has become so common these days. His death leaves a void in the music industry that not many will be able to fill.
In ten, twenty years time, people will remember where they were when they heard Michael Jackson had died, much like another generation remembers the death of Elvis. Rightly so. Few have ever achieved as much as Michael Jackson did in his life.
Regardless of what music you like, even if you're the most kvlt black metaller, if you grew up in the '70's, '80's or '90's, Michael Jackson's music will have touched you in some way. It was like a security blanket, the one thing that would always be there. I don't think I ever considered that he would die so young, and not on the eve of making a comeback.
The demonisation of Michael Jackson the man has taken some of the sheen off of his career, perhaps deservedly, perhaps not. As a child star he was never going to have a normal life, and it has been well documented how that could easily have contributed to his problems later in life.
Regardless of what people thought of him in the end, whether you loved him or hated him, he was a one of a kind pop star. The first true pop star of the video age, the first to suffer the trial by media that has become so common these days. His death leaves a void in the music industry that not many will be able to fill.
In ten, twenty years time, people will remember where they were when they heard Michael Jackson had died, much like another generation remembers the death of Elvis. Rightly so. Few have ever achieved as much as Michael Jackson did in his life.
Tuesday, 23 June 2009
Bloodstock 2009
It's been an odd couple of weeks for Bloodstock. Last week, GWAR pulled out of the festival, leaving quite a few people disappointed. Bloodstock announced Anathema (previously announced to be playing Damnation) and Wolf (Already having played at Hammerfest, in breach of Bloodstock's own booking rules). That kept people quiet for a while. Then Fear Factory pulled out...
In fairness, Fear Factory cancelled their entire tour, including Sonisphere, but it hits Bloodstock harder as Fear Factory were a bigger band for Bloodstock than they were for Sonisphere. Even with the announcement of Entombed (also previously at Damnation) playing, it leaves a bit of a hole in the line up. Coupled with the odd choice to have smaller co-headliners and the even odder choice of Europe headlining the Sunday, it makes the bill seem distinctly average.
The problem this seems to be the sheer number of hard rock/metal festivals in the UK this year. Already we've had Hammerfest and Download, and we have Sonisphere, Bloodstock and Hard Rock Hell still to come. Add into that Deathfest and Damnation, one day festivals that Bloodstock organisers have said that they don't want to book the same acts as, it leaves a much reduced pool of bands to choose from. The problem is, Bloodstock don't like to book bands that are playing other festivals.
This works when the market is limited, but looking at the sheer amount of festivals it's becoming impractical. Bloodstock can't just book the smaller, more underground bands anymore, but a lot of the bigger bands want the larger audiences and paychecks that are offered elsewhere. Bloodstock looks slightly confused in the middle of all of this.
While Bloodstock is still ticking over nicely, it doesn't look likely to be able to hit the level of expansion that it seemed that it would. It may just be that next year the booking rules for the lower card will have to be relaxed, particularly since Hammerfest is happening again next March, and this years festival has an early march on bands that would traditionally be at Bloodstock.
I can't help but feel that the UK festival market has reached saturation point, and that something is going to have to give. I fear for the future of Sonisphere, particularly as tickets sales seem to be very sluggish. Download will be safe, having had a good recovery with a strong line up this year. Hammerfest and Hard Rock Hell are off-season and in many ways sheer marketing genius. Bloodstock should by rights be safe, but it would struggle in the face of any more cancellations.
In fairness, Fear Factory cancelled their entire tour, including Sonisphere, but it hits Bloodstock harder as Fear Factory were a bigger band for Bloodstock than they were for Sonisphere. Even with the announcement of Entombed (also previously at Damnation) playing, it leaves a bit of a hole in the line up. Coupled with the odd choice to have smaller co-headliners and the even odder choice of Europe headlining the Sunday, it makes the bill seem distinctly average.
The problem this seems to be the sheer number of hard rock/metal festivals in the UK this year. Already we've had Hammerfest and Download, and we have Sonisphere, Bloodstock and Hard Rock Hell still to come. Add into that Deathfest and Damnation, one day festivals that Bloodstock organisers have said that they don't want to book the same acts as, it leaves a much reduced pool of bands to choose from. The problem is, Bloodstock don't like to book bands that are playing other festivals.
This works when the market is limited, but looking at the sheer amount of festivals it's becoming impractical. Bloodstock can't just book the smaller, more underground bands anymore, but a lot of the bigger bands want the larger audiences and paychecks that are offered elsewhere. Bloodstock looks slightly confused in the middle of all of this.
While Bloodstock is still ticking over nicely, it doesn't look likely to be able to hit the level of expansion that it seemed that it would. It may just be that next year the booking rules for the lower card will have to be relaxed, particularly since Hammerfest is happening again next March, and this years festival has an early march on bands that would traditionally be at Bloodstock.
I can't help but feel that the UK festival market has reached saturation point, and that something is going to have to give. I fear for the future of Sonisphere, particularly as tickets sales seem to be very sluggish. Download will be safe, having had a good recovery with a strong line up this year. Hammerfest and Hard Rock Hell are off-season and in many ways sheer marketing genius. Bloodstock should by rights be safe, but it would struggle in the face of any more cancellations.
Thursday, 18 June 2009
Steel Panther @ the 229 Club 16/06/09
Steel Panther are fast becoming one of the most hyped bands going at the moment, picking up press coverage and good reviews for their album 'Feel the steel'. The basic conceit is that they're a parody of an '80s hair metal band, and it's something that doesn't quite work on record, coming across as too puerile at times. The live show needed to be something special to make it work.
The 229 club seemed an odd choice of venue, particularly since I'd never even heard of it before. Just around the corner from Great Portland Street, it's hidden under some kind of student hostel. The time on the ticket said 'doors at 19.00'. we arrived at 19.45, and the doors were untroubled by the idea of opening. I was after 20.00 before we finally got in. Not the best start.
Inside, Steel Panther pennants hung from the ceiling, and giant posters of the band adorned the walls. A small venue, it filled up pretty quickly. Even so, we still had to wait until after 21.00 for the band to take the stage, opening with 'Eyes of the panther'. The sound was good, and the crowd got into it nicely, but what was surprising was what happened when the music stopped. Steel Panther, it turns out, are a heavy metal cabaret show.
Perhaps due to their origins as a straight covers band in LA, they have the banter between songs down perfectly, building up self deprecating jokes that work with the characters they've created and which lead nicely into the songs, giving them the edge that they're missing on CD. In many ways, the album is a lot like owning the soundtrack to 'This is Spinal Tap'. The songs are amusing, but you lose the context.
Musically the band were excellent, playing not perfect versions of their songs. A surprise highlight came when Justin Hawkins joined them onstage to add backing vocals to 'Party all night..' and then for a quick run through 'I Believe in a thing called love', which reinforced my idea that they're an American version of The Darkness, minus the subtlety.
Satchel, the guitarist, also treated us to one of the most over the top guitar solos I've ever seen, which culminated with him behind the drumkit playing the bass drum with his feet while playing classic guitar solos. The musicianship in the band is truly high quality.
By the end of the set they had the crowd calling for more. Having run out of original tracks we got note perfect versions of Motley Crue's 'Kickstart my heart' and Van Halen's 'Panama', which rounded the night off nicely.
While I don't expect them to have much of a shelf life, they are worth checking out next time they tour. Failing that, there's always hope for a Darkness reunion...
The 229 club seemed an odd choice of venue, particularly since I'd never even heard of it before. Just around the corner from Great Portland Street, it's hidden under some kind of student hostel. The time on the ticket said 'doors at 19.00'. we arrived at 19.45, and the doors were untroubled by the idea of opening. I was after 20.00 before we finally got in. Not the best start.
Inside, Steel Panther pennants hung from the ceiling, and giant posters of the band adorned the walls. A small venue, it filled up pretty quickly. Even so, we still had to wait until after 21.00 for the band to take the stage, opening with 'Eyes of the panther'. The sound was good, and the crowd got into it nicely, but what was surprising was what happened when the music stopped. Steel Panther, it turns out, are a heavy metal cabaret show.
Perhaps due to their origins as a straight covers band in LA, they have the banter between songs down perfectly, building up self deprecating jokes that work with the characters they've created and which lead nicely into the songs, giving them the edge that they're missing on CD. In many ways, the album is a lot like owning the soundtrack to 'This is Spinal Tap'. The songs are amusing, but you lose the context.
Musically the band were excellent, playing not perfect versions of their songs. A surprise highlight came when Justin Hawkins joined them onstage to add backing vocals to 'Party all night..' and then for a quick run through 'I Believe in a thing called love', which reinforced my idea that they're an American version of The Darkness, minus the subtlety.
Satchel, the guitarist, also treated us to one of the most over the top guitar solos I've ever seen, which culminated with him behind the drumkit playing the bass drum with his feet while playing classic guitar solos. The musicianship in the band is truly high quality.
By the end of the set they had the crowd calling for more. Having run out of original tracks we got note perfect versions of Motley Crue's 'Kickstart my heart' and Van Halen's 'Panama', which rounded the night off nicely.
While I don't expect them to have much of a shelf life, they are worth checking out next time they tour. Failing that, there's always hope for a Darkness reunion...
Friday, 12 June 2009
Faith No More @ The Brixton Academy 10/06/09
So. There was a lot of anticipation for this one, wasn't there? The first Faith No More gig in eleven years, and it sold out almost immediately. There was a definitely a feeling that it could be something special. I saw them on their last UK tour, playing the Cambridge Corn Exchange of all places, and always felt priviliged that I got to see them. Getting to see them again was a bit of a bonus.
The Academy was uncharacteristically good about getting people in, which meant we had time to hit the bar before the support act, Selfish Cunt. I get the impression that Mike Patton had more than a little to do with the choice, as they ran through a set of garage-y music designed to bait the crowd, complemented by the singer dancing like an avant garde extra from Saturday Night Fever. The crowd booed, the band got off on it, and I loved it.
Of course, it was always going to be Faith No More's night. Finally arriving on stage amid a great sense of anticipation, they opened with a cover of 'Reunited', fittingly, before launching into 'The Real Thing' and 'From Out Of Nowhere'. Despite some inital muddy mixes, they hit top form, and you'd never guess that they'd been away for so long.
More obscure tracks followed, littered with the classics and some amusing banter ('So, you're the children of the people who came to see us last time?') and a phenomenal amount of energy from the whole band. My personal highlight came during 'Midlife Crisis' (dedicated to everyone at the back) when the crowd sang the chorus, perfectly and without prompting. Epic then sent the crowd mental.
Two encores later, we left after making sure there was nothing else to come. Despite missing out a few big songs, they proved that very much still have it. Not only that, they're still one of the best bands around. It's good to finally have them back.
The Academy was uncharacteristically good about getting people in, which meant we had time to hit the bar before the support act, Selfish Cunt. I get the impression that Mike Patton had more than a little to do with the choice, as they ran through a set of garage-y music designed to bait the crowd, complemented by the singer dancing like an avant garde extra from Saturday Night Fever. The crowd booed, the band got off on it, and I loved it.
Of course, it was always going to be Faith No More's night. Finally arriving on stage amid a great sense of anticipation, they opened with a cover of 'Reunited', fittingly, before launching into 'The Real Thing' and 'From Out Of Nowhere'. Despite some inital muddy mixes, they hit top form, and you'd never guess that they'd been away for so long.
More obscure tracks followed, littered with the classics and some amusing banter ('So, you're the children of the people who came to see us last time?') and a phenomenal amount of energy from the whole band. My personal highlight came during 'Midlife Crisis' (dedicated to everyone at the back) when the crowd sang the chorus, perfectly and without prompting. Epic then sent the crowd mental.
Two encores later, we left after making sure there was nothing else to come. Despite missing out a few big songs, they proved that very much still have it. Not only that, they're still one of the best bands around. It's good to finally have them back.
Tuesday, 9 June 2009
Faith No More
Faith No More are playing the Brixton Academy tomorrow night, their first gig in eleven years. It's a warm for their headline performance at Download on Friday, and it cost far more than I would normally pay for a gig at the Brixton Academy. but it's Faith No More, the band that most people thought would never reform.
They were a unique band back in the nineties, being one of the first metal bands to use hip-hop elements (which rather unfairly seems to get them blamed for nu-metal), but they stood out more to me for their lack of a rock star attitude. Hell, they sacked the only one of the band to think he was a star. Fame never sat well with them, which was odd for a band I remember seeing on Top Of The Pops, and it wasn't too surprising when they split up. They'd become too commercial for their own sensibilities.
I saw them on the last UK tour they did, back in 1997. They played the Cambridge Corn Exchange and blew me away. I've spent the better part of a decade being able to lord it up over people that I saw them live. Now the world and its dog is going to get the chance, and, despite the fact that it means I won't be able to gloat anymore, I'm glad that people will get the chance to see them and have the memories that I've had for the past twelve years. Besides, I get to go and see them too.
Now all we need is for Soundgarden to reform...
They were a unique band back in the nineties, being one of the first metal bands to use hip-hop elements (which rather unfairly seems to get them blamed for nu-metal), but they stood out more to me for their lack of a rock star attitude. Hell, they sacked the only one of the band to think he was a star. Fame never sat well with them, which was odd for a band I remember seeing on Top Of The Pops, and it wasn't too surprising when they split up. They'd become too commercial for their own sensibilities.
I saw them on the last UK tour they did, back in 1997. They played the Cambridge Corn Exchange and blew me away. I've spent the better part of a decade being able to lord it up over people that I saw them live. Now the world and its dog is going to get the chance, and, despite the fact that it means I won't be able to gloat anymore, I'm glad that people will get the chance to see them and have the memories that I've had for the past twelve years. Besides, I get to go and see them too.
Now all we need is for Soundgarden to reform...
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