FRIENDLY FIRES + White Lies @ Les Saints

By Christine Lariviere - The Lonesome Strangers - 03/30/2009

Late March is always a time for Montreal to shrug off the last of its winter blues, but this is always signaled by the odd day or two of freakishly cold weather…winter’s final death rattle.  So it was in a cumbersome winter jacket, layered with a sweater and t-shirt for good measure that I bustled my way down into the hot, crowded depths of Les Saints on March 30th to catch Friendly Fires playing their first show in Montreal.

When one first hears a song by Friendly Fires, it’s easy to assume that they’ve jumped on the coattails of bands like !!! (Chk Chk Chk), churning out feel-good, danceable indie rock.  But when you really give this Hertfordshire band a chance and listen to the entirety of their self-titled debut album, you’ll see that they have quite a versatile sound, with songs that have excellent, non-conformist structures.

Their unique sound translated well on-stage as drummer Jack Savidge relentlessly beat out surprisingly dynamic rhythms.  Notable is the broken-down, eccentric circus beat (similar to the one in Battles’ “Atlas”) in “White Diamonds”.  Ed MacFarlane’s vocals soared, bravely extending further than most singers do.  MacFarlane is clearly talented, with a good range that he uses to its full advantage while never showing any signs of strain.  His is an 80’s vocal style, recalling Brandon Flowers of The Killers (to which MacFarlane even bears a striking physical resemlance)during the more melodic parts.  However, Friendly Fires dismantle the obvious comparisons to The Killers with some contemporary indie flair, splicing songs with twichy, rambly portions (this can be especially seen in “On Board”.)

Throughout the set, both the band and the crowd danced and clapped happily along.  There was a sense of unity, as though the band was part of the crowd, assimilating the entertaining/entertained dymanic.  The band members themselves were dressed simply and seemed extremely down-to-earth despite their immediate success.  An earnest expression of “I can’t believe we’re overseas, playing for a large crowd” was plastered over their faces as they thanked the crowd for being there and proceeded to play an encore: “Ex-Lover”.        

Supposedly headlining, London’s White Lies played before Friendly Fires, since their singer had an illness affecting his throat.  However, they managed to play a respectible set nonetheless. 

White Lies were originally called Fear of Flying, but decided to change their name in light of the different tone their music took.  To Loose My Life… is indeed a departure from their previous work, as it has much darker undertones, despite a relatively upbeat, pop sound.  This morbidity, not so subtly hinted at in the album’s title, can be mainly observed in their lyrics.

Tune into The Lonesome Strangers with Christine every Sunday from 4PM – 6PM