Click here for photos of The Horrors at 2014 Austin Psych Fest in Austin, TX
Click here for photos of The Horrors at House of Vans in Brooklyn, NY on April 29th, 2014
Click here for photos of The Horrors at 2013 Truck Festival in Steventon, U.K.
Click here for photos of The Horrors at Roundhouse in London, U.K. on October 12th, 2011
Click here for photos of The Horrors at 2011 All Tomorrow’s Parties USA in Asbury Park, NJ
Click here for photos of The Horrors at Music Fest NW 2011 in Portland, OR
Click here for QRO’s review of The Horrors at Doug Fir Lounge in Portland, OR on October 7th, 2009
At first glance, The Horrors feel as though you’re watching an early episode of Night Flight, but in real time. Frontman Faris Badwan bares a slight resemblance to Joey Ramone, had he traded in his leather MC jacket for that of the PVC version, and bangs for a layered haircut. Bassist Rhys Webb could make one conjure up images of Tears for Fears’ Curt Smith circa The Hurting era with strikingly similar features, not to mention, instrument of choice. Guitarist Joshua Hayward has a face that would’ve blended in perfectly if featured on a Duran Duran tee shirt in 1984. The band’s aesthetic as a whole encompasses an early 1980s feel with a tinge of 2005, the latter being year they formed in South-on-Sea, England. The Horrors have evolved over their decade long career span from a garage band with brief, punk length songs to an otherworldly New Wave/ post-punk outfit without needing a flux capacitor to get any of us there. They played New York’s (le) Poisson Rouge on Wednesday, June 13th.
There couldn’t be more of an appropriate place for such a shadowy band to take stage than at (le) Poisson Rouge (QRO venue review). Outside of every bathroom in the venue are giant black and red lacquer accent chairs that would have any girl with an Instagram account shout at high volume, “I need a picture of me sitting on this!” With a capacity of 700, LPR delivers an intimate concert setting. This is a rare occurrence for New York New Wave enthusiasts who seek a live ‘80s flashback. Usually these days, one would have to succumb to watching the back of Martin Gore’s head from 50 levels above the stage in Madison Square Garden at a Depeche Mode show (QRO photos of that show). There isn’t a barricade with a gap of six feet from the crowd to the stage like stadiums have, so to be at arm’s length with any of their Boss pedals was no feat at all.
Fully black clad, the band emerged into the crowd’s sight amidst red and blue lights overhead. The pulsating synths from Tom Furse and Joe Spurgeon’s dominant percussions lead us into the show. In a world of his own, Badwan performed while refraining any eye contact with the audience, opting to cover his face with his angular, three-dimensional haircut. His stage presence was commanding and incorporated microphone-stand assaulting dramatics, and regardless of whether or not the audience was exclusively acknowledged, they were immersed.
The crowd was treated to a set list that mirrored the honest evolvement and currents of moody, human emotion. They begin the night with the enchanting, synth-heavy, daydream of a track, “Hologram”. And just as some daydreams end when a harsh reality hits, they soar straight into anger and apathy with “Machine”. The lyrics, “Insect in amber / Is that what you are? / Keep it in mind now / You will never, never, never, be more than a machine,” would make any post-goth who was ever in deep, lovelorn despair (all of them) relate.
Towards the end of the night, we fell into somewhat of a calming state with “Something to Remember Me By” a track with lyrics such as, “When you never question the doubts in your mind / When the distance grows but the end is in sight / Nothing left to lose when there’s nothing left to find,” depicting a moment of clarity backed by the sound of euphoric synths.
Although the bulk of the set list consisted primarily of songs off of V, it did include the standout tracks of prior albums. “Sea Within a Sea”, an eight-minute long track that sounds like Bauhaus with pep, and “Who Can Say” (which borrows lyrics from the Shangri-las classic “He Cried”) both from 2009’s Primary Colors (QRO review). Other crowd favorites included “Still Life”, a song from 2011’s Skying (QRO review), and “Weighed Down,” another great song off of V.
One downfall to the night would be the inaudible lyrics that were heard for much of the time. So impossible to decipher, even Shazam couldn’t “quite catch that” and gave up. The audience consisted of invested fans that were all well aware of the lyrics to every song and sang along regardless. With such a strong fan base and their obvious ascending talent, I wouldn’t be surprised if at some point in the near future, I’d have no choice but to catch them play live, only viewing the back of their heads from 50 levels above in an arena.
