Funeral For A Friend, Koko, October 13th
Funeral For A Friend played at Koko on October 13th
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By Matthew Champion. |  |
Friday, 16, Oct 2009 02:57
Melissa Richards is disappointed with the Welsh hardcore legends despite a seamless north London performance.
Having been a huge fan of Funeral for a Friend in the early days when they kicked off the Concrete Jungle stage at Leeds Fest in '03 I was intrigued to see whether this band could still cut it or if they had become just another soulless emo band.
Trying to be comedic - or perhaps making a poor attempt at impersonating Faith No More's cover of Peaches and Herb's Reunited by at their return to Brixton - FFAF opened their set with Stevie Wonder's I Just Called to Say I Love You. With lead singer Matt Davies trying to engage the crowd it was evident that this did not have the desired effect and as he shouted out to the crowd in his faux Californian accent my heart sunk a little as I knew how this was going to pan out.
Throughout the gig it seemed as though there was somewhat of a divide amongst the crowd as half the crowd rocked out to classics Rookie of the Year, Juneau and Escape Artists Never Die whilst the rest nodded along to the less aggressive and seriously cheesier tracks like Into Oblivion. Gone were the teenagers pushing and shoving even as I edged ever closer to the front and noticed that I was surrounded by 'suits'.
I can't fault the band's performance as it was seamless and on stage it was evident that they still love the music they write and perform, but something was missing. If you like 'emo then this band are worth a watch but if like me your tastes have progressed somewhat heavier and darker I'd suggest living in the past and sticking with the Casually Dressed and Deep in Conversation album cause the new stuff just isn't as good.
Melissa Richards