FAITH NO MORE | 28.11.2014 | Amoeba Records
FNM surprised us with a show to celebrate Record Store Day Black Friday and the release of Motherfucker on 7" vinyl, their first release in 17 years. One year one let us refresh our memories on what an awesome show it was.
Set List
Motherfucker
As the Worm Turns
Spirit
Ashes to Ashes
Superhero
Photos / Reviews
Rock 'N Roll Cocktail
SF Weekly
Faith No More Leaves the Crowd Panting For More at Amoeba
Black Friday 2014 saw the auspicious return of both Star
Wars and Faith No More. And both “returns” were morsels that demanded feasts in
their wake…for which we’ve been asked to wait.
The 88-second trailer for the seventh Star Wars film teases
a movie we won’t see for another 13 months. One hopes Faith No More, whose
five-song set at Amoeba last Friday left fans ravenous, won’t make us wait that
long. Fans as young as 5 and as old as 70 filled the aisles in anticipation of
the 6 p.m. start time. By 6:15, the band took the stage with their Album of the
Year-era lineup — Mike Patton, Mike Bordin, Billy Gould, Roddy Bottum, and Jon
Hudson — fully intact. They also brought out a man sheathed in a leather suit
and facemask whom they referred to as “The Gimp.” It was unclear what purpose
The Gimp’s presence served: possibly he’s some greater thematic component of
their new material or a potential ally for Patton’s legendary onstage
shenanigans.
But so it goes: without explanation or qualification Faith
No More launched into their new single, “Motherfucker,” a rousing return to
form for this singular and strange band. The energy was a bit sluggish
initially, the vibe slightly harshed by the mid-evening pace and brightly lit
stage. Patton’s soaring chorus, however, gave the crowd chills — they were now
very much back. Bassist Gould and keyboardist Bottum joined in for some
righteous three-part harmonies on extremely deep cuts, “As The Worm Turns” and
“Spirit,” from their debut, We Care A Lot and follow-up, Introduce Yourself,
respectively. Both roused the audience against the limits of the record-strewn
aisles and served as a reminder of what a great thing it is to have this band
back.
Their sound, at once atmospheric, metallic, poppy, and
transgressive, remains unmistakable and without peer of a comparable caliber.
“Ashes to Ashes” off of their last full-length release, 1997’s Album of the
Year, saw them hitting a steady stride that finished off with new track,
“Superhero,” a perhaps even more promising taste of their new material than the
aforementioned “Motherfucker.”
Then…that was it. The band left, gimp and all, as the Amoeba
crowd clamored for more. Even your humble encore-averse reporter was dying for
at triple what we’d just heard. Their manager came out and shook his head, the
house music went on, and the audience departed, frankly shocked that it was all
over and done with so quickly.
As someone else in attendance pointed out, bands usually do
an in-store at Amoeba in advance of a headlining show elsewhere in town. But
despite a handful of festival dates abroad in 2015, there’re no live actions on
the Faith No More docket for the near future. One hopes and presumes these are
simply under wraps at the moment because damn…that was just not enough.
Critic’s Notebook: Most of the band’s Bay Area family —
including their teenaged nieces and nephews — crowded along the side of the
stage. Said nieces and nephews mercifully did not roll their eyes when others
in attendance explained they had been following the band since they were “their
age.”
Amoeba SF pic.twitter.com/W7TizeNyYS
— Faith No More (@FaithNoMore) November 29, 2014
Amoeba SF pic.twitter.com/GKOSxkEDL5
— Faith No More (@FaithNoMore) November 29, 2014
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