Feeder - London Brixton Academy, 7/3/2003

  by Anthony Strutt

published: 10 / 3 / 2003

intro

Anthony Strutt may or may not have seen Feeder before, but, at their first London show in almost two years, with ex Skunk Anansie man Mark Richardson replacing Jon Lee on the drum seat, finds himself a surprising new convert

I am not sure if I have seen Feeder before or not. I think I may have seen them six years ago at V97 in Chelmsford in Essex when they opened up on both the main stage and then fifteen minutes later on the NME stage. A lot of hits later and four albums into their career brings them to a completely sold out tour, their first to promote their new ‘Comfort in Sound’ album. Sitting in on the late Jon Lee’s drum seat is ex Skunk Anansie drummer, Mark Richardson, who has now joined the band and founder members, Grant Nicholas and Taka Hirose, on a full-time basis. Tonight’s show is their first London show in almost two years and expectations are high. On first are newcomers, Serafin, who get the evening off to a good start. Their rocking sound combines chunky bass lines with feedback-driven guitar. Unfortunately due to poor sound quality frontman Ben Fox’s vocals can’t be heard that well during their 30 minute set. They come across though as a combination of Placebo and the Smashing Pumpkins with a touch of the Vines thrown in. For more information check out www.serafin.co.uk Next on is the absolutely dreadful w****rock of Hell is for Heroes, who, while the teenagers down the front love them, are just another tiresome metallish lad rock band. Feeder join us on stage just after 9pm and have the house rocking in no time. They start off with ‘Come Back Around’ and end the set with ‘Seven Days in the Sun’. They have been through the wars since Jon Lee’s suicide in January of last year, but come back fighting here with anthem after anthem, which had me dancing away with by the end. This was with me knowing only the singles that London’s alternative station XFM have graced us with as well . ‘Comfort in Sound’, which tells of the group’s recovery from Jon Lee's death, is as fine a starting point as any to discover the magic world of Feeder . More information can be found at www.feederweb.com

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