The Faim: Stylus, Leeds — Review
On the 22nd of September, The Faim played Stylus, Leeds, in support of Against The Current. URY’s Alice Cronshaw was there, and this is what she had to say about the night.
The Faim are currently on tour with Against The Current. Although, by the number of gig-goers that were milling about the venue in their merch — hours, even, before the gig started — you’d be forgiven for assuming that they were the headline act, and not the other way around.
On entering the venue the crowd split was pretty obvious, with fans of The Faim at the very front, sporting the band’s distinctive yellow and black colour scheme. However, as the band came on, with their infamous drum introduction heralding their arrival, the atmosphere of the room changed. The crowd packed in closer to the front as the band kicked things off with ‘My Heart Needs to Breathe’, a song that easily won their audience over with its punchy, catchy chorus.
Frontman Josh Raven excelled when it came to communicating with the crowd, opening ‘Make Believe’ by delivering a hard-hitting speech about mental health, that, somehow, managed to still leave the room abuzz with energy. The song opened with drums and piano almost reminiscent of ‘Welcome to the Black Parade’, before moving into the dramatic chorus, which highlighted Raven’s live-vocal talent perfectly.
As the band descended into the chorus of their first big hit, ‘Saints of the Sinners’, it became apparent just how well planned the whole show was. Although Stylus doesn’t boast the best staging a venue could, carefully orchestrated lighting took full advantage of what was available, bringing the whole performance together cohesively which made for a very memorable set from start to finish.
‘A Million Stars’ saw the whole crowd with their hands in the air — needing minimal persuasion from the band — and this slight lull in the set turned out to be a vital rest before they blasted into ‘I Can Feel You’. This track set in motion everyone who had previously been leaning against the nearest railing or wall, drawing the whole venue up onto their feet.
Unsurprisingly, The Faim closed with the title-track of their EP, ‘Summer Is A Curse’, a wildly catchy hit that surely ensured that anyone who wasn’t convinced by the set so far wouldn’t hang on to that feeling for too long. The whole band moved with such a relentless and infectious energy that, as the lights went down, it left me wondering how I was going to make it through what promised to be an equally energetic set from Against The Current.
On the way out of the venue, Raven was found posing for photos and chatting with fans, and a long queue began to form. The whole ethos of the band seems to be to engage with their fans and audience, both on the stage and off it. It seems to be working. After attracting absolutely packed crowds for their sets at Reading & Leeds it’s clear that The Faim are on an unstoppable rise, and fast. I’m convinced that if you haven’t heard of them yet, you soon will.
Alice also had the opportunity to catch up with The Faim on the night, and you can hear her interview with them below.
The Faim are still in Europe for a few more dates, and have even more planned in the US afterwards.
7th October — Uebel & Gefaehrlich, Hamburg, Germany
9th October — Ampere, Munich, Germany
10th October — Batschkapp, Frankfurt, Germany
11th October — Yoyo, Paris, France
Don’t forget to follow our Twitter, and we’ll keep you posted on all our latest reviews, interviews, and radio shows.
