Future Of The Left
Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff - 27th January 2017
Support: USA Nails, Frauds
Small independent venues are the lifeblood of our music scene. Independent Venue Week is a way of celebrating them, though to be fair the best way of supporting them is to actually visit them more than once a year. All the same, Future Of The Left like to do a homecoming show each year and so it was back to Clwb Ifor Bach for a heavy dose of loud, raucous behaviour.
Have to say, openers Frauds were well worth turning up for. A two-piece from Croydon, they take the drums/guitar format and make it sound like there's a full supporting cast on stage. Loud? You bet, but good tunes too and a lot of fun.
London punks USA Nails seemed to do a lengthy soundcheck when they took to the stage. Didn't they do one beforehand? Their singer seemed to have a degree of arrogance about him that seemed out of place for a support band. He came across like he didn't want to be there. That continued throughout their set which I have to say I struggled with. Sure, they sounded tight enough, but the songs didn't really go anywhere and failed to hook me. Our Mate Colin seemed to enjoy them, but I personally wasn't sorry when they finished.
Future Of The Left always draw a bit of a crowd, but this particular show was packed, a sell-out in fact. It also boasted the most enthusiastic, middle-aged mosh pit I think I've ever witnessed. Falco was on top form as ever, stopping the opening song Adeadmanalwayssmellsgood as an audience member was clapping out of time, before berating a Welsh-speaking heckler for not heckling in English.
Then there was the revelation that he and bassist Julia are parents-to-be. "Don't get up on the stage, because I don't want you to, Julia's pregnant and my drinks are here. The two most important things in my life." The audience paid heed to Falco's request, but they were by no means passive with plenty of rather impressive crowd-surfing and moshing going on from start to finish.
The set covered the whole decade of the band's existence including a healthy dose from last year's 'The Peace And Truce Of' album, though the long-time crowd-pleasers remain present. I did glance over at Our Mate Colin during Manchasm as the repeated refrain "Colin is a pussy / A very pretty pussy" was hollered. He seemed unphased... Other tracks of note (for me) were Arming Eritrea, In A Former Life, You Need Satan More The He Needs You, the splendidly-titled If AT&T Drank Tea What Would BP Do, and best of all How To Spot A Record Company.
I kind of knew what to expect from this show having seen Future Of The Left before, but it certainly wasn't a let-down.
There is a real dearth of decent FotL live material, so I'm posting a couple of studio tracks instead. Sorry 'bout that...
- How To Spot A Record Company - Future Of The Left (from 'How To Stop Your Brain In An Accident')
- If AT&T Drank Tea What Would BP Do? - Future Of The Left (from 'The Peace And Truce Of Future Of The Left')
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