Page 47 - Black Velvet Issue 91

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LESS THAN JAKE / THE SKINTS / MARIACHI EL BRONX / KEMURI / AMFX – FIREBALL FUELLING THE FIRE
TOUR - BIRMINGHAM O2 ACADEMY, 05.10.16
The first ever Fireball Fuelling The Fire tour set off in October with alter egos of the members of hardcore band The Bronx, and, as their
Less Than Jake headlining. A five-band bill for only £10 a ticket (plus book- name suggests, they’re a mariachi-styled band. They have a horn section
ing fee) made it a bargainiferous show to be at. AMFX are the first band like Less Than Jake, but that’s where the comparison ends. They’re an
on stage, after winning Fireball’s competition to open the Birmingham interesting concoction, something we don’t see much of in the UK, let
show. The four-piece from the Shropshire area play bright and breezy alone at a punk rock gig. Kudos to Matt Caughthran and co. for being able
pop punk. Songs like ‘Six Weeks’ are upbeat and catchy, while ‘Dear Ven- to do something so different to what The Bronx is, and doing it well.
tura’ was inspired by a trip to California. They could do with working on But the one band we really came to see was Less Than Jake. Sadly,
their between-song banter a little – things get slightly awkward when front- they only have about 75 minutes to perform. They blast into action with
man Graeme Kynaston asks guitarist Liam Goddard to talk to the crowd ‘Last One Out Of Liberty City’. During the next hour and 15 minutes we
while he tunes up. Liam doesn’t know what to say. get confetti, toilet paper, blasts of smoke, beach balls, fans on stage, hu-
Kemuri from Japan are heaps of fun. Frontman Fumio Ito jumps up morous between-song chat, at least five mentions of Fireball Whisky and
and down with a huge smile on his face and black and white chequered catchy pop punk hits with a dose of ska. All your favourite Less Than Jake
shorts on, while promoting positive mental attitude – that is, until it’s time songs are in the shorter than usual set – ‘Johnny Quest Thinks We’re Sell-
for the song ‘Hate’. These ska punkers know how to entertain. They’re outs’, ‘Plastic Cup Politics’, ‘The Ghosts Of Me And You’, ‘Gainesville Rock
enthusiastic and funny. It’s their first time touring in the UK but we hope it City’ and ‘Nervous In The Alley’. They play some old songs and some
won’t be their last. newer songs. We’re told that there’ll be a new EP next spring. They leave
The Skints and Mariachi El Bronx show the diversity of music included ‘All My Best Friends Are Metalheads’ until last and it is the icing on the
on this tour. The Skints lean towards reggae while also incorporating ska, cake. Less Than Jake have perfected an entertaining show, and while it’s
soul and punk. Marcia Richards is a wonder woman, alternating between over too soon, it’s definitely well worth the ticket price.
keyboards, melodica, flute, saxophone, sampler and singing. We’ve never YYYYY
seen someone play so many different instruments during a 45-minute set. SBV
The Skints are definitely talented – like Mariachi El Bronx, even though Chris DeMakes (Less Than Jake) Photo By Shari Black Velvet
we may not listen to their music through choice. Mariachi El Bronx are the

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