Friendly Fires, London Shoreditch House
July 14, 2009
Shoreditch House is a marvel. There’s a swimming pool outside, aptly, a Back To The Future-style opening roof inside, and views across London as the sun sets. It doesn’t get much better than that, really.
Now let’s get this straight – the massive hype around Friendly Fires somehow escaped me; I always thought Late Of The Pier made ‘Fires sound a bit, well, er easy? And I was concerned that live, Friendly Fires would veer on the wrong side of e-trindie (that’s try-hard indie/electro, for those not in the know).
WOAH, HOLD ON, IS THAT THE SCENT OF FUN? Gosh, it’s been a while since you’ve showed your face.
STOP, IS THAT DANCING AND SMILING AND STUFF ON THE STAGE RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME? Again, yes.
BUT THAT CAN’T BE THE SOUND OF AN ALREADY VIGOROUSLY EXCITING ALBUM BROUGHT TO LIFE WITH EVEN MORE VIBRANCY, CAN IT? I believe so.
Enough of that patronising nonsense, it was only to prove a point.
That otherwordly syncopation of ‘Paris’ in Friendly Fires’ show as part of Levi’s OnesToWatch’s 5 night revue pulls off live like a aural ecstacy, its chorus absolutely enveloping the room. London lights up around the band, the band are orchestrally massive.
A new song, ‘Kiss Of Life’ is debuted tonight too, and the good news is that it’s great. Whether Friendly Fires can keep it up for a second album of more of the same is something I’m as cynical on as I was about their live performance before tonight though, so I wouldn’t hold out hope on me all that much…
‘White Diamonds’: uplifting. ‘On Board’: frenzied. ‘Lovesick’: mad levels of euphoria in the chorus. Friendly Fires play like they’ve just written these songs that have so clearly been kicking around for quite some time and with that, they make me wonder why it’s so rare to see this level of movement.
And this is all the night before their headline show at the Roundhouse, which singer Ed MacFarlane later chats to us about. Turns out they’re much bigger than he knew, having had some 40,000 people try to get tickets.
There’s this inimitable buzz about Friendly Fires, there’s so much depth to their music. It’s dressed up in exaggerated clothes, every sound knotting with the next yet no sound added for padding. ‘White Diamonds’ is crisp and tight live more than on the record, and it’s amplified further by an absolutely buzzing crowd. It’s cranked inconceivably up and up and up (etc) with an excitement that seems to have disappeared from London stages until recently.
They’re irrepressible. It’s a magical combination of shoegaze guitars, manic-fast rhythms, bleeding sonics and trippy escapism – and the room feels fourteen times as big, as big as their sound. Which is simply colossal.
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