Future Of The Left @ 229 Club (10/09/09)
Venue: 229 Club, Great Portland Street
Date: 10/09/09
Notorious for their lives shows among many other things, Future Of The Left are a band that Iâve never seen live until Offset Festival last weekend, yet here I am with 2 shows in a week; insert London bus analogy here. The Offset set (review here) was a straight forward set of clinical excellence, though something missing perhaps, mostly due to a limited time set FOTL had to power through their late afternoon set. Tonight is something very differentâ¦
Having toured extensively over the summer, and for the last few years really, tonightâs devastating show is delivered from a rock band obviously at the top of their game. From opening track Arming Eritrea, with the blood curdling legendary Falco shriek âCOME ON RICK!â to closing live special Cloak The Dagger, there is no let-up in the emphatic quality from the Welsh Trio. Two albums of excellence means every track is a deadly barrage of noise. Every guitar crunch and booming bass line is crisp, sharp and every note swaggering aggressively round the room.
Falco and Kelson are in top witty sardonic form when dealing with invited abuse from drunken crowd banter, mercilessly ripping into anyone stepping up, including a poor chap in a pink T-shirt. An outing for Falcoâs least favourite track Drink Nike gets an airing after discovering they have more time than thought, much to the audienceâs delight however as the ever increasing mosh-pit explodes.
A cliché as much as it is, every track could be called a highlight, it seems trite picking out specifics. Tongue-in-cheek laden You Need Satan More Than He Needs You is a cracking scream-a-long âGod Dammit itâs gonna rain, but I only brought my socks!â is one of many inventive surreal lyrical phrases â and Falco knows how to write these in abundance. Plague Of Ones is another that's an explosive frenzied behemoth of molotov cocktail rock.
As the set draws to a close, Kelson ventures into the crowd for a surf, and manages to be held aloft heroically in the centre of the venue for a good couple of minutes. A fitting end to a spectacular gig, the future is looking bright for FOTL.
Future Of The Left - Last Night I Saved Her From Vampires (live album) on Spotify Highly recommended listening.
Having toured extensively over the summer, and for the last few years really, tonightâs devastating show is delivered from a rock band obviously at the top of their game. From opening track Arming Eritrea, with the blood curdling legendary Falco shriek âCOME ON RICK!â to closing live special Cloak The Dagger, there is no let-up in the emphatic quality from the Welsh Trio. Two albums of excellence means every track is a deadly barrage of noise. Every guitar crunch and booming bass line is crisp, sharp and every note swaggering aggressively round the room.
Falco and Kelson are in top witty sardonic form when dealing with invited abuse from drunken crowd banter, mercilessly ripping into anyone stepping up, including a poor chap in a pink T-shirt. An outing for Falcoâs least favourite track Drink Nike gets an airing after discovering they have more time than thought, much to the audienceâs delight however as the ever increasing mosh-pit explodes.
A cliché as much as it is, every track could be called a highlight, it seems trite picking out specifics. Tongue-in-cheek laden You Need Satan More Than He Needs You is a cracking scream-a-long âGod Dammit itâs gonna rain, but I only brought my socks!â is one of many inventive surreal lyrical phrases â and Falco knows how to write these in abundance. Plague Of Ones is another that's an explosive frenzied behemoth of molotov cocktail rock.
As the set draws to a close, Kelson ventures into the crowd for a surf, and manages to be held aloft heroically in the centre of the venue for a good couple of minutes. A fitting end to a spectacular gig, the future is looking bright for FOTL.
Future Of The Left - Last Night I Saved Her From Vampires (live album) on Spotify Highly recommended listening.
