Fenech-Soler

 

As the years go by my music tastes get more and more out of date. One thing I've said numerous times is the only truly modern act I listen to is Fenech-Soler. Today however marks 10 years since their "Rituals" album was released which was their last album to feature the full line up so on that basis I guess they're not so modern any more.

One thing I'm not sure of to this very day is just how big they were. They appeared on the TV and you'd hear their music out and about and I think you'd hear them on Radio 1 too. At the same time they never had a Top 40 hit and the majority of people I mention them to have never heard of them.

When I first went to see them in concert it was at a 400 capacity venue that turned into a nightclub after the gig. Once the gig finished they had a chat with the fans before tidying the equipment away themselves and loading it onto a van out the front. Very much the sign of an up and coming band then, but you could sense they were about to get bigger.

By the time the "Rituals" album came out they were playing Shepherds Bush Empire and being supported by New Young Pony Club who had tasted Top 40 success.

Having established themselves in an era when recorded music was no longer profitable they would tour a lot. It was their live shows that made them stand out. They would rotate between different instruments on the stage and it was well put together. A friend of mine wasn't overly impressed with their recorded music but was impressed when he saw their live performance.

A year or so after the "Rituals" album things went quiet. Then in 2016 they came back but 2 of the 4 members had left the band including the member who's surname is Fenech-Soler.

A new album and tour was announced and their London date was in the slightly smaller Heaven. Shortly before the gig and email went out to their mailing list informing of a competition to win tickets to the gig. I'd already bought tickets but thought I may as well enter the competition and offer the tickets to friends if I won.

I did win the competition and was given a code to quote at the door. On arrival I said I had a code but before giving it they asked if I'd won a competition. I said yes and they just let me in. Judging by the space in the venue it would seem they didn't sell enough tickets so they had a number of competition winners to help boost the numbers.

They probably made a loss that night and given touring was presumably their main source of income I sensed this was the beginning of the end for the band.

They never officially broke up, no announcements were made in that respect. But given they've not released any new music or done any gigs in the last 6 years I think it's safe to say they are no more.

The only member who still appears to be making a living from music is Andrew Lindsay. He was one of the members who left in 2016 and works as a music producer and touring musician. For the others I guess it's back to the day job.

Fenech Soler @ Heaven

After missing out on their comeback London gig back in October, I finally got to see Fenech Soler last night at Heaven.

The first time I saw them in concert was in 2010 around the time their first album came out, so that gig was basically them playing their album. Last time I saw them in 2013 was after their second album came out where they played every track from that album, plus a few from their first. Now they've just released their third album, the burning question was how much of their new material would be played?

It was pretty much a 50/50 split between old and new. They began with "Night Time TV" and "On Top" from the new album. Then came the ever popular "Lies" with an extended intro and got the crowd moving once the beat kicked in. This was followed by their comeback single "Kaleidoscope".

I've found their latest album to be less catchy than the first two, but have always found their music sounds better live than recorded and could definitely say by this point that their new material follows suit. Now just the Duffy brothers in the group having been a four piece, they had a couple of touring musicians on the stage with them including their cousin on the drums. As such the loss of two members hasn't changed the live concept of their performances.

When they played "Stop and Stare" and confetti came out of the ceiling, I feared that the concert was coming to a close having been going less than an hour. Fortunately this wasn't the end of the gig, but the end wasn't too far off.

When they came on for the encore, they finished the gig with "In Our Blood", a great tune to round off the night with and is probably my favourite tune from their second album.

As I didn't expect the gig to finish so soon, I stuck around at the end to finish my beer. Then Ross from the band came down from the stage to chat with the fans, I had a quick chat with him myself and told him it was good to see they didn't call it a day like I thought they may have done prior to the comeback.

Overall a top gig, I recommend you go to see them live even if you're not sure of their recorded music, trust me they sound much better live. My only complaint is that the set was a bit short, but if you've ever seen them, you'll know they work really hard on stage going from instrument to instrument so no doubt they were knackered by the end of it. Hopefully I won't have to wait another four years till I next see them.

Fenech Soler return as a duo

At the start of last year, Fenech Soler announced on their social media they were working on a new album. After numerous updates throughout last year saying it was nearly done, they went pretty quiet this year.

A couple of weeks ago they announced the album was complete and they were going to be playing some gigs in the near future. The new promo photos only had Ben and Ross on them though which raised the question, have Dan and Andrew left the band?

It was confirmed a couple of days ago that they have both left the band and Ben and Ross would carry on as a duo, with additional musicians for the live shows.

Ironically the band named themselves after Dan's surname, which is Fenech Soler. They are keeping the name though, Ben and Ross's surname is Duffy and that names already taken.

Aside from festivals, I believe the last time they played a gig in the UK was in 2013 when I went to see them at Shepherds Bush Empire. I would highly recommend going to see them, they are very good live and sound better than they do on the albums. They are also a band who don't do encores which is a good thing in my opinion.

For those in London, they will be playing at Oslo in Hackney on October 27th. Sadly I won't be able to go myself, but if you're free that night then get yourself down there.