Earlier this month L.A. surf punk outfit FIDLAR announced their second full-length album, too, set for release on 4th of September via Witchita and Mom + Pop. Building on top of this announcement, FIDLAR also gave us a dab of what to expect from their new album by premiering a satirical music video for the lead track “40 Ounce On Repeat.”
But let’s forget about that for a moment.
Last night (23rd of June) FIDLAR played Heaven in Charing Cross, London. For a band that seldom plays gigs this side of the Atlantic it was an opportunity for their UK fan base to flock to a single venue and rock out in a most excellent fashion. There were people from Manchester, Liverpool, Nottingham, Sheffield (the list goes on) all moshing and crowd-surfing together. Although most of the faces in the crowd belonged to strangers, it felt like the whole gang had rendezvoused to have a good time. For a friendly atmosphere it was equally as rough however and bruises were being dished out like presents at a birthday party.
After the support acts had adjourned from the stage they left a void only to be filled by heavy tension in their absence. The crowd were already getting the party started and chanting the lyrics to “Cocaine” in an attempt to spur a response from the band. It wasn’t long after that we saw Zac, Brandon, Elvis and Max wander out and salute us. They didn’t wait around either; they dove straight into “Stoked And Broke.” – Promptly afterwards everybody lost their shit.
FIDLAR also played a cover of Weezer’s “Sweater Song,” a chorus of meowing from the crowd ensued. They played a bunch of favourites: “Cocaine” “40oz. On Repeat” “Max Can’t Surf” “Westcoast” “Punks Are Finally Taking Acid” “Cheap Beer” “White On White” amongst some others that I can’t remember (sorry).
In short, you haven’t heard FIDLAR until you’ve seen them live. Last night they took every single person, threw us against the canvas and assaulted us with a flurry of riffs – it was epic. In years to come people will compare seeing FIDLAR live to seeing military action in Vietnam or something.
If you missed FIDLAR last night then fret not amigo, you’ll still be able to catch them at Reading and Leeds festival at the end of August.
