Future of the Left
To start the evening young talents Tall For Jockeys play a short set which they decide to cram with as many songs and as little chat as they can. They are positively bursting with potential but lacking in charisma. Fever Fever are more at ease and steadily win the crowd over with their angular pop rock powered by a twin vocal attack. The volume of applause increasing after each song as the room fills up to near-capacity. When switching from two guitars to one they employ Jack White like dirty riffs to make up for the fact they don't have a bassist. The end of their set finds their catchy hooks and harmonising shrieks, sounding like an aggressive shrill CSS, ringing in everyone's ears.
Future of the Left kick off with fast, heavy guitar based songs building the crowd into a frenzy for new single Sheena is a T-Shirt Salesman. They provide banter with the crowd when switching over to the synth based songs in the middle of the set and sarcastically pronounce Failed Olympic Bid to be in celebration of the Olympics and the Jubilee just for good measure. Guitarist/Singer Falco is on top form creating laughter by re-naming a member of the audience. His sometimes robotic vocal stylings (Polymers are Forever) career off into glorious indecipherable screams at times but without the band losing their pop edge.
Besides the awesome tunes they play, many of which from tonight's performance can be found on brilliant new album the plot against common sense, what I love about Future of the Left is how every member is not only a more-than capable musician, they are engaging to watch. The performance bursts with energy and a passion. Drummer Jack Eggleston looks demented and concentrated whilst bassist Julia Ruzicka looks like a rocking version of Countdown's Rachel Riley. She holds the band together tightly allowing allowing crazy guitarist Jimmy Watkins to indulge in madcap antics such as shouting at the crowd playing guitar atop a fans shoulders, heading water bottles off his amp mid-song, and running across the top of the bar trying to find a victim's head to strap his beer bottle to and then attempt to drink from whilst lying on the floor of the pit. Falco meanwhile dismantling Egglestons drum kit whilst he is still playing final song Lapsed Catholics/I Trusted You (Andy Kaufman cover) ensuring that there is sadly no encore.