James Arden checks out the garage rockers latest album.
The Christian rock band from Brighton bring religion to the masses.
Recipe for modern R'n'B album: liberal helpings of guest rappers and an overdose of sexual euphemisms.
Promoting their upcoming album Passive Me, Aggressive You, The Naked And Famous have been critically acclaimed as the new MGMT. Listening to their material, there is a great deal to like. It’s mainstream, but not cheesy. It’s electro and rock. It’s laid back, but often with meaning. There is no doubt that with the right exposure the band could be big.
This tour then should serve to broaden their market. Indeed, it is worth noting that I have rarely seen Fibbers so full for an event. Opening the evening, Club South were a band following directions of the Arctic Monkeys in places, Pigeon Detectives in others. Main support came from band Wolf Gang, who I would highly recommend. It would be fair to say that their performance was on par with that of the main act themselves, and their music had the crowd going. McElligott’s vocals were both strong and haunting.
The Naked and Famous took to the stage for around 45 minutes, playing the majority of tracks on their album in that time. Whilst their opening was a little understated, track ‘Punching In A Dream’ quickly had the audience on side and was well received by all. The band themselves were notably psyched up by the support, and as they started to relax, leads Powers and Xayalith danced and moved freely about the stage.
Although all of this added to the fast paced, electro sound, their vocals were frequently drowned out by the bass line and synths that are so key to their tracks. Sometimes it did not matter: shouting refrains of ‘Girls Like You’ certainly retained their resonant feel due to the efforts the band were making to be heard. However, it certainly detracted from the main talent of the group, which can be showcased much more obviously in some of their live sessions available online. Tracks that suffered notably included ‘Frayed’, where the drum beat alone was marking time over the synths, and ‘Eyes’, whose dependence on clashing beats and synth drops could not be matched by the band vocally.
Nonetheless, ‘All Of This’ was just as emotional as it sounds on the record, the contrast between Powers and Xayalith’s vocals emphasising the lyrics and the struggle of which they speak. ‘Young Blood’, the track that earned the group their fame, made up for all the previous faults. Not only did it get the crowd moving, but here the group gave their all: singing, dancing, clapping and hand punching with the packed venue.
The Naked and Famous have a sound not only similar to MGMT, but reminiscent of Passion Pit in places too. Although their material did not translate completely, there were highlights in the show that still displayed vocal talent and the uniqueness of the band’s musical synths. To hear for yourself, try lead single ‘Young Blood’.
You must log in to submit a comment.
