Futurefest, Newcastle Academy
Artist profile:
The Futureheads
Date: 20/12/06
Rating: ****
Welcome to Futurefest - The Futureheads' own festival, showcasing their taste of the best in Northern music right now - although this particular mix could have done with a lot better organisation. Spread across two stages, the idea seemed perfect - as soon as a band finished on the main stage, the next one would start on the other, smaller one. Unfortunately, it seems the boys didn't plan on the gig selling out, and if you wanted to see all the acts sets you were screwed - it was impossible, the reasons for which will soon become clear...
Catweasles open proceedings on the main stage like a punch in the man-area: very loud, very painful - yet at the same time strangely pleasing. As they rip up the stage in an all-too-short twenty minute set, it's not hard to see that in a couple years with a bit of tweaking, these guys will be big business. It's easy to tell just from the insane leaps of guitarist Peter Bartram that they've got it - they've just got to locate how to use it best. For now, however, they're the perfect opener.
As Catweasles last chords ring out we make our first rush of the night, narrowly making it up the stairs into the Academy 2 in time to catch This Ain't Vegas, who should've been playing the main stage for a start. Their guitarist moves three times as fast as Bartram to a point that it seems surprising the stage doesn't collapse; and if you can manage to take your eyes of him for a moment you could cast them onto vocalist Adam, whose hunched body surrounding the microphone is as intense as Peter Doherty singing into a Libertines obsessive's eyes. Ridiculously, most of the sold-out crowd have opted to instead stand about downstairs rather than come and watch these local legends almost steal the show - which they would have had the night not been so young.
After TAV it was back to the main stage for Kubichek!, who have been making quite a few waves in the past year, and it's easy to see why - from new single 'Outwards' ("Just sitting in silence is not an option") to the already-classic 'Stutter' ("If things will go wrong then just let them go wrong!"), these guys have the tunes, complete already with their own signature sound, in bucket loads. Their stage show has stepped up seriously since the last time they supported The Futureheads as well - whereas before the band oddly glared at people dancing to them, they now encourage it, and even do a fair bit of dancing themselves. Now they've finally let go, they can only get better.
Another run upstairs supplies us with a packed house and a problem - there is a gaggle of people at the bottom of the stairs, protesting while being held off by security guards, apparently the Academy 2 has filled to capacity and from now on it's a very literal one-out-one-in rule. The reason for this? Why, the hotly-tipped Dartz! have just taken to the stage.
Receiving the first proper mosh pit of the night (alright, twenty fourteen year olds dancing down the front, but there was an actual stage dive from one of them toward the end, honest!), Dartz! storm through a set where almost every song could be seen as their big hit from all the reception it gets. Jerky-pop anthems flow one after another until they reach dizzying heights and explode with a massive seven-or-so minute sing-along to future single 'Once! Twice! Again!' in which the lads truly milk it for all its worth, but we'll let them off as they’ve long deserved it. Dartz! is very good indeed.
Now, what is it with these Northern lads and dancing around like idiots these days? Back on the main stage, Paul Mullen, singer for Yourcodenameis:milo seems to be suffering from the same problem, bounding about like his band mates are in fact killer bees. It becomes very obvious very soon that Milo give a fantastic live show - and while their latest duet-style album has received practically nothing but critical acclaim, the people themselves seem to be reluctant to latch on, and it's obvious why. It's easy to believe Mullen believes every word he sings, however it's a tad harder to believe in them yourself. Hopefully they'll rely on themselves for the third album so one can start believing in them again; apart from anything else it seems far too early to send someone with such fantastic glasses to the knacker's yard...
After Milo comes the biggest disappointment of the night - everyone of course came for one band above all others, and although this is The Futureheads' night, that band was clearly their brothers-in-crime Field Music. Not that their set is disappointing - the disappointment is more for the unlucky sods (and there's hundreds of them) left muttering sadistically at the bottom of the stairs as the place was packed within thirty seconds of Milo starting - and Field Music aren't due on for 45 minutes yet.
When they eventually take to the stage; heaven on earth rings around the Academy 2 as they sing out their and your own troubles up to the sky and into oblivion. The new stuff stands out and yet slots in perfectly with the old - and while newbie 'She Can Do What She Wants' gives stiff competition, constant-closer 'You’re So Pretty' is still the highlight of their very inspirational live set.
We're swiftly kicked out of the second stage in preparation for the after show party (oh, the high life...), so instead decide to join the rabble and actually watch The Futureheads for their last gig of the year (maybe even their last gig, if the ever-constant rumours of a split are to be believed), stumbling into the room in time to hear the end of opener 'Area'. The 'Heads are their usual cheeky chappy selves - during 'He Knows' a Santa hat is thrown from the crowd and bassist Jaff is all too happy to model it for us along with a "ho ho ho", tempting unofficial front man Barry Hyde to refer to him as a tart. We're even treated to an extra Christmas present on top off this party – a cover of 'A Picture Of Dorian Gray', a song originally by the almost-mythical Television Personalities which The 'Heads first covered as a b-side a few years back. It almost makes up for the badly-planned stage times. Almost.
The obvious highlight of the night is the now-expected 'Hounds Of Love' game, but they're on such fine form that that's only just. In fact, the lads are so bloody brilliant it's almost impossible to believe they're currently unsigned. The best unsigned band in Britain? You can bet on it.
Han Quintrell
The Futureheads Official Site
The Futureheads Myspace
Buy The Futureheads CDs | Buy The Futureheads mp3s | Buy The Futureheads Tickets | Buy The Futureheads Merch
Date: 20/12/06
Rating: ****
Welcome to Futurefest - The Futureheads' own festival, showcasing their taste of the best in Northern music right now - although this particular mix could have done with a lot better organisation. Spread across two stages, the idea seemed perfect - as soon as a band finished on the main stage, the next one would start on the other, smaller one. Unfortunately, it seems the boys didn't plan on the gig selling out, and if you wanted to see all the acts sets you were screwed - it was impossible, the reasons for which will soon become clear...
Catweasles open proceedings on the main stage like a punch in the man-area: very loud, very painful - yet at the same time strangely pleasing. As they rip up the stage in an all-too-short twenty minute set, it's not hard to see that in a couple years with a bit of tweaking, these guys will be big business. It's easy to tell just from the insane leaps of guitarist Peter Bartram that they've got it - they've just got to locate how to use it best. For now, however, they're the perfect opener.
As Catweasles last chords ring out we make our first rush of the night, narrowly making it up the stairs into the Academy 2 in time to catch This Ain't Vegas, who should've been playing the main stage for a start. Their guitarist moves three times as fast as Bartram to a point that it seems surprising the stage doesn't collapse; and if you can manage to take your eyes of him for a moment you could cast them onto vocalist Adam, whose hunched body surrounding the microphone is as intense as Peter Doherty singing into a Libertines obsessive's eyes. Ridiculously, most of the sold-out crowd have opted to instead stand about downstairs rather than come and watch these local legends almost steal the show - which they would have had the night not been so young.
After TAV it was back to the main stage for Kubichek!, who have been making quite a few waves in the past year, and it's easy to see why - from new single 'Outwards' ("Just sitting in silence is not an option") to the already-classic 'Stutter' ("If things will go wrong then just let them go wrong!"), these guys have the tunes, complete already with their own signature sound, in bucket loads. Their stage show has stepped up seriously since the last time they supported The Futureheads as well - whereas before the band oddly glared at people dancing to them, they now encourage it, and even do a fair bit of dancing themselves. Now they've finally let go, they can only get better.
Another run upstairs supplies us with a packed house and a problem - there is a gaggle of people at the bottom of the stairs, protesting while being held off by security guards, apparently the Academy 2 has filled to capacity and from now on it's a very literal one-out-one-in rule. The reason for this? Why, the hotly-tipped Dartz! have just taken to the stage.
Receiving the first proper mosh pit of the night (alright, twenty fourteen year olds dancing down the front, but there was an actual stage dive from one of them toward the end, honest!), Dartz! storm through a set where almost every song could be seen as their big hit from all the reception it gets. Jerky-pop anthems flow one after another until they reach dizzying heights and explode with a massive seven-or-so minute sing-along to future single 'Once! Twice! Again!' in which the lads truly milk it for all its worth, but we'll let them off as they’ve long deserved it. Dartz! is very good indeed.
Now, what is it with these Northern lads and dancing around like idiots these days? Back on the main stage, Paul Mullen, singer for Yourcodenameis:milo seems to be suffering from the same problem, bounding about like his band mates are in fact killer bees. It becomes very obvious very soon that Milo give a fantastic live show - and while their latest duet-style album has received practically nothing but critical acclaim, the people themselves seem to be reluctant to latch on, and it's obvious why. It's easy to believe Mullen believes every word he sings, however it's a tad harder to believe in them yourself. Hopefully they'll rely on themselves for the third album so one can start believing in them again; apart from anything else it seems far too early to send someone with such fantastic glasses to the knacker's yard...
After Milo comes the biggest disappointment of the night - everyone of course came for one band above all others, and although this is The Futureheads' night, that band was clearly their brothers-in-crime Field Music. Not that their set is disappointing - the disappointment is more for the unlucky sods (and there's hundreds of them) left muttering sadistically at the bottom of the stairs as the place was packed within thirty seconds of Milo starting - and Field Music aren't due on for 45 minutes yet.
When they eventually take to the stage; heaven on earth rings around the Academy 2 as they sing out their and your own troubles up to the sky and into oblivion. The new stuff stands out and yet slots in perfectly with the old - and while newbie 'She Can Do What She Wants' gives stiff competition, constant-closer 'You’re So Pretty' is still the highlight of their very inspirational live set.
We're swiftly kicked out of the second stage in preparation for the after show party (oh, the high life...), so instead decide to join the rabble and actually watch The Futureheads for their last gig of the year (maybe even their last gig, if the ever-constant rumours of a split are to be believed), stumbling into the room in time to hear the end of opener 'Area'. The 'Heads are their usual cheeky chappy selves - during 'He Knows' a Santa hat is thrown from the crowd and bassist Jaff is all too happy to model it for us along with a "ho ho ho", tempting unofficial front man Barry Hyde to refer to him as a tart. We're even treated to an extra Christmas present on top off this party – a cover of 'A Picture Of Dorian Gray', a song originally by the almost-mythical Television Personalities which The 'Heads first covered as a b-side a few years back. It almost makes up for the badly-planned stage times. Almost.
The obvious highlight of the night is the now-expected 'Hounds Of Love' game, but they're on such fine form that that's only just. In fact, the lads are so bloody brilliant it's almost impossible to believe they're currently unsigned. The best unsigned band in Britain? You can bet on it.
Han Quintrell
The Futureheads Official Site
The Futureheads Myspace
Buy The Futureheads CDs | Buy The Futureheads mp3s | Buy The Futureheads Tickets | Buy The Futureheads Merch
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