Fucked Up @ OFF! Festival - Damian Comes to Life

Once Japandroids finish their set we found ourselves hurtling towards the main stage. Our excitement was reaching dangerously high levels of 'holy-moses-we're-about-to-see-the-most-awesome-band-ever'. For the third time in a year. First there was Brighton, a swirling frenzy of men (and my girlfriend - she's hardcore) moshing while the lead singer climbed on top of the bar. Then there was London, a human heartbeat of jumping, pushing and screaming while the lead singer climbed into the crowd. Now there was OFF Festival. And yes, the lead singer did do something. 

So we're waiting at the main stage, going over in our heads what head-banging, foot-crushing hit we're going to witness and then it suddenly hits us. We're at the wrong stage. That earlier hurtling of bodies now becomes a super-sonic charged Bolt sprint to the other end of the festival. We make it just in time to safely secure ourselves on the right hand-side of the tent, 15 ft from the pit (it was a sunny festival vibe okay, we had flip-flops on!). We're now ready. Oh and by the way, this band is Fucked Up.

Yet another Toronto based punk band (remember I mentioned Metz!), this 6 piece have been working hard since 2001 releasing more singles, EPs, splits and 12"s than you would think was physically possible. If they were a husband they're the type who does everything. They built the house, they created their own business and they gave birth to their beautiful twins, Ester and Marie. That's just how hard they work. The band comprises of 10,000 Marbles on lead guitar, Mustard Gas on bass, Guinea Beat on drums, Gulag on rhythm guitar, Young Governor on guitar and finally Damian "Pink Eye' Abraham on vocals. Remember that last name because he is one of the main reasons I'm gushing so much about Fucked Up. 

As mentioned above Damian likes to travel. A lot. As we stood and witnessed the band from a safe distance we suddenly noticed Damian was out of the tent visiting the audience at the back. Five minutes later he's leading the fiercest conga line around the crowd and leaving an empty path in its wake. He's a man who wants to please and if the music isn't enough for you then his showmanship is. Damian combines joining the crowd with offering the mic to audience members, allowing them to sing, mumble or scream (my personal choice) missing lyrics. To put it mildly, while the band is on stage playing fierce and true, Damian is making sure the audience have a show to remember. 

Much like Metz, you'll need to appreciate punk in order to appreciate Fucked Up. From their set list they play a mix of old classics such as Police and I Hate Summer, as well as songs from their last 2 albums. Highlights include songs Queen of Hearts, The Other Shoe and David Comes to Life. Personally I don't want to review the music because it's your own choice to form an opinion and it's better to make it on your own via some Youtube listening. However, I will say this, Fucked Up are a band that play rhythm driven noise at its best. Damian has an ability to create shouty yet totally catchy lyrics ("David was a boy, just a letch!" - once you've heard this it's hard not to scream it during a gig). While also capturing a real intelligence, Damian's lyrics to their third album, David Comes to Life, push the band creatively as the album recounts a tale of two lovers and how their paths intertwine. After such an impressive third album it becomes a real wonder how Fucked Up will outdo themselves this time. 

Fucked Up are a band that implore you to, just as they do, give your all. If you're after an intelligent, hardcore punk band then this is it. They also put the 'ow' in show. Next time we meet Fucked Up I'll actually be ready, a pair of Doc Martens should suffice. 

David Comes to Life, from the debut album Hidden World:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZ4uvEhg4wQ























Damian "Pink Eye" Abrahams - momentarily zoned out before the mayhem commences

Metz - Switching Saturday @ OFF! Festival On

Never heard of OFF! Festival? Neither had I. This Polish festival, however, is definitely worth hearing about. In an age where we're bombarded with stale information about bands that aren't worth hearing or places that aren't worth seeing, the stumbling upon of OFF! was very much a revelation. Here lies a festival that, at £46 for 3 days with camping, offers you bands such as The Smashing Pumpkins, My Bloody Valentine and Deerhunter. After experiencing Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats, Woods, Cloud Nothings and The Smashing Pumpkins on the Friday we'd already gotten our monies worth. There were still two days to go.

Friday got us off to the psychedelic dripping doom metal of Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats, who we totally saw collecting their guitars and gear alongside us at the airport ("They must be going to OFF!"). A band hailing from Cambridge, they sound like the soul-soup combination of what a cannibal might cook if they'd come across the wreckage of a plane housing Black Sabbath, Witch and The Stooges. A worthy band to be our first taste of OFF! 

However, if Fridays opener is to be compared to soul-soup from the cannibal's bowl, then our first taste of music on Saturday must be compared to the chase before the plane's victims came to their soupy end. That is to say, that the band in question were a high velocity, high intensity, high up (well, they were up on a stage) band that managed to heat up an already sweltering afternoon. If we the crowd were feeling the effect of the 35°C sun, these guys must have been close to popping with the show they were giving us. So who was this band and if they weren't one of the headliners why should we care?

To put it simply, they were Metz. A Toronto based punk noise trio with their finger on the button. A button that triggers the explosives strapped to the stage and ends the show in a cacophony of noise and a showering of blood and guts. Okay, maybe that last bit was a metaphor. In truth though their set was close to having that effect. Their set lasted 50 minutes and rarely had a moments pause. They opened with their self-titled debut album's first track Headache, which coincidentally the audience also ended the set with. Now that's not a jab at Metz because if you're into noisy punk rock and you've come for noisy punk rock then there's nothing about this band you won't love. They're engaging on stage, sharing small banter with the crowd (Bassist aka Bruce Campbell's love child: "This next one's a dancing song, so start moving around."). They also play their huge Canadian hearts out, making sure that if they're not soaked with sweat by the end then they haven't done the crowd justice. Highlights included Get Off and Wet Blanket which were perfect mosh-pit hits to rock out to. 

Now the only criticism I felt I had when leaving at the end of the set was that their songs all sounded very similar. However, after re-listening to the album and reflecting about the set I've come to the conclusion that if you enjoy one Metz song you'll enjoy them all and thats no bad thing. If you're after some Canadian punk, mosh-pit inducing goodness then I can't think of a better band (except Fucked Up - but I'll review them later). For now however, take flight to Youtube and search Metz, live or in the studio this is some information worth listening to. 

Get Off video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAjHuKWh0so

Alex Edkins in full flow