Super Furry Animals at The Roundhouse, London, gig review: 20th anniversary tour is a full-on sonic assault
Hearing Fuzzy Logic in its entirety highlights what a classic it is
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Your support makes all the difference.It's been 20 years since Welsh psych rockers dropped debut album Fuzzy Logic, but on tonight's standout performance the tracks are still as fresh as if they were written yesterday.
Gruff, Cian, Guto, Daf and Bunf got back together again in 2015 after a six year hiatus and, after playing set to sell out venues, decided to tour a back-to-back set of Fuzzy Logic and second album Radiator.
And what a set. The band strides on to the stage in white boiler suits and launches straight into “Show Me Magic”: a full on, tight-as-you-can-get sonic assault, which pretty much sums up what’s to follow.
To the left of the stage there’s the return of the giant inflatable animal that used to accompany them on tour, while another SFA staple is the use of cue cards held aloft by the band announcing the album title and urging applause. Pink lasers dissect the rapt crowd and video projections of spinning letters like a fruit machine announce each song.
By “Something For The Weekend”, the third track and standout single off the debut album which neatly distils the nascent SFA sound, the whole venue is rocking. Just over halfway through the album, the opening bars of 'Bad Behaviour' conjure up a sizeable, good-natured moshpit bouncing at the front of the stage.
Hearing Fuzzy Logic played in its entirety live underlines what a classic it is. And as the closing bars of “For Now and Ever” ring out and band members hold aloft their SFA scarves and guitars the crowd bellows its approval.
Another cue card announces Round 2 and we’re straight into “Furryvision”, instrumental opener of Radiator. Again it's a faithful reproduction of the album, the same running order as on disc.
Crowd favourite “Demons” - the last single to be taken from Radiator - sees both band and audience bathed in blood red lights, the brass section taking the live version to another level.
The other singles off the album - “Hermann Loves Pauline”, “Play it Cool'”and “The International Language of Screaming” - rightfully receive standing ovations. But it’s the way the songs are woven together with the other tracks which illustrates the power of Radiator. Difficult second album? I think not.
“Mountain People” dissolves into squelchy acid chords before the Furries finish with traditional closer “The Man Don’t Give A Fuck”, originally released between both albums.
It’s the perfect frenzied finale, especially when the “Golden Retriever” yeti outfits make a welcome return. Can we have Guerrilla and Rings Around the World next, please?
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