My last time out for Francis of
Delirium was a scorching Bristol Exchange gig on the hottest day of 2022 (gig
1,237); the mercury is slowly and finally rising, albeit to more comfortable
levels than the 37 degrees on that day (!), but I was still expecting a hot one
from this promising Luxembourg combo tonight. Hot on the heels of a string of
jagged and ragged EPs channelling the likes of Pixies, Throwing Muses and even
old school goth rockers Bauhaus, FoD finally released “Lighthouse”, their debut
full-length, earlier this year. My first impression was of a mellower and more understated
work than their previous releases, however repeated listens have brought to
light a clutch of well-crafted, varied and introspective songs of hope and
self-reflection from the pen of precociously talented FoD songwriter, singer
and mainstay Jana Bahrich, with an almost effortless easy flow from track to
track. A proper cohesive album, then, rather than a collection of songs
haphazardly flung together, and likely one to remain a favourite of 2024.
Their subsequent tour passed through Brizzle so I of course booked early, and set off down a sunny M4 on an economy run – well, I’ve got 3 more Bristol gigs before the month’s out, got to make the petrol last! Parked in Wapping Wharf opposite the venue, happily figuring out the workings of this rather confusing car park (good thing too, as 2 more of the above 3 gigs are also here!) and sat outside with a Pepsi before Matt joined me. Had a nice catch up with my good friend before we hazarded a trip upstairs to see openers Eve Appleton Band, on at 8. Oh dear. It immediately felt as if we’d taken a wrong turn and emerged into 15th century Sherwood Forest, with some very dated sounding baroque folk from this young sextet. All violins, painted faces, fairies in the garden and almost madrigal choral refrains. We gave it 3 numbers then repaired to our pavement-front outside bench for more rock and family chat instead!
Back up for about ¼ to 9, this tiny upstairs room already being full of the faithful and curious, so I made do with a spot a couple of rows back, house left by the door. Exactly at 9, Jana led the 3-piece touring iteration of Francis of Delirium onstage (the “studio” version being just her and non-touring producer/ cohort Chris Hewitt) and, after the delirious (!) build of opener “Alone Tonight”, gushed, “we’re Francis of Delirium from Luxembourg; and we unanimously agree Bristol is our favourite city in the UK! It's Wednesday, we’re going to have a good time…” The bouncy upbeat powerpop stomp of “Blue Tuesday”, the best song The Beths never wrote, was up next, in one fell swoop pretty much fulfilling that promise. Great start!
Jana herself purports to be quite
the grunge fan, evident in her baggy and utilitarian dress sense, but also
citing the likes of Pearl Jam and Smashing Pumpkins as FoD influences. Whilst I
concede that their sound is very much rooted in that alt-80s/ 90’s sound, I
hear the melancholy alt-country of Madder Rose, the off-kilter menace of
Throwing Muses and the smoother and more ephemeral college pop of Tanya Muse’s
subsequent charges Belly instead, rather than the grunge. “Live”, however,
Francis of Delirium do crank it up with big riffs and earth-shaking power
chords aplenty, giving extra gravitas and dramatic robustness to even their
lighter material, such as the stately power ballad of “Real Love”, rendered beautifully
tonight, whilst oldie “Funhouse” took on a seething menace throughout its’ clattering
hurtle, powered by that Bauhaus-esque drum roll. Jana herself was in upbeat
form too, fangirling about an encounter with actor Emma Watson earlier that day
(“my voice is shaking even talking about it!”), introducing her “live” band by
discussing their pet peeves, then before set closer “Give It Back To Me”,
detailing the required audience participation in the hook outro then rating our
performance as, “solid for a children’s choir!”
Before that, however, an earlier “Circles” was a dreamy lilt into a big riff chorus; the chilled and urbane “Who You Are” featured some lovely choral harmonies; then penultimate number “Something Changed” was my set highlight, a plaintive heartbreak build to a huge widescreen choral hook, Jana holding the strident note perfectly before an almost angelic dual harmony outro. The aforementioned, elegiac “GIBTM” was an apposite way to end a melancholy yet powerful set, Francis of Delirium being quite adept “live” in adding the crunchy guitar noise without overpowering the feeling and mood of the music. Grabbed a list and got the band (including a predictably besieged Jana at the merch stand) to sign it, then bade farewell to Matt and headed off home. So, not quite the utter scorcher as last time, but nonetheless a band coming to the boil nicely; Francis of Delirium are hot stuff!
