Future Of The Left - London 100 Club - 30/1/07
4/5
By: Dan Monsell
At last, one of those gigs where you feel you've been part of something, witnessed something special, and seen a band who really, actually care. We need nights like this sometimes to reinstate our belief, our enthusiasm that was once so high and has begun to wane as we got older, went to too many gigs and became more cynical. Another shining beacon of underground talent, Future of the Left provided the rewards that can reaped for believing in bands on very good, quite unknown labels, such as Too Pure; home to FOTL, and the unsung greatness of bands such as Electrelane and The Organ. The packed out punk-rock-dripping-from-the-walls setting of the 100 Club is a perfect location for this trio, previously known to many here as part of overlooked noisenik heroes Mclusky, and fellow Welshmen Jacrew.
The set is tight, packed full of chunks of some of the best low-down and gruff rock riffs we've heard for some time. It's a rock and roll display of the freshest, most modern variety. Such a gift is however not milked into a ham-fisted display of rawk, but mixed in with shouty duel vocals and intricate bass and drum patterns that demonstrate the experience and comfort these musicians have over their instruments. The unpredictability of some of the stop-start rhythms, combined with the confidence and strength with which they are played, leads us to question whether we might have finally found that replacement for the At The Drive In style sound for which we so many of us have been searching for so long.
On top of all this, at last, a political element to a band in a time where so many seem so happy to ignore the magnitude of the dire political situation of which they're in. The band's name is no accident, neither is the cry of 'Tories, Tories, thanks for the meadows. You keep the A-Roads, we'll have the towns' blasted out mid-set. The ironic taunt of 'violence solved everything' in 'The Lord hates a Coward' demonstrates the sense of humour underpinning the severity of the political message expressed by the band.
Above everything tonight, this show is just downright fun. As the band return to a demanded encore, they bash out their heaviest track of the set. At the end there is a descent into noise, until just the drummer is left on stage. He carries on playing, until the band's roadie fully dismantles his kit around him. It's a fitting end to a show that was part serious rock and roll importance, part punk-rock mayhem. Perhaps the neglected men of Jarcrew and Mclusky will finally get the recognition many feel they deserve, helping push things forward, as The Future of the Left.
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