courtesy of Marcus Darpino.
As much as I would like it to be, Washington DC is not the live-music center of the universe. Sometimes to see that special show I have to hop on a jet, castaway on a boat, or hit the road as I did this past weekend to catch one of the limited East Coast reunion shows by Faith No More. These shows were limited enough (only 3) and special enough (a hell-froze-over reunion) that we thought some of our DC readers might be interested in reading about the one I attended at the Mann Music Center in Philadelphia last Saturday.
When considering Faith No More and the quality of concert they put on, it is the little details that make the difference. The little details like: Mike Patton riding a fan like a horse while singing Michael Jackson's 'Ben'; an unexpected cover of Vangelis' 'Chariots of Fire' theme; song verses done entirely in flawless Portuguese on a whim; and a singing, daredevil, strip-tease atop a 30-foot rope-ladder. In other words, when Faith No More perform live there really are no such things as little details; everything about a Faith No More concert is as huge and in-your-face as it can possibly get. From Mike Patton's epic vocal range and deranged persona; to Roddy Bottum's impenetrable, wall of synth-keyboards; to Billy Gould and Mike Bordin's spastic funk; and Jon Hudson's heroic guitar riffs Faith No More's live sound is so gigantic it is almost absurd. And it would be absurd if they weren't such a tight and overly-talented group of individuals. Saturday night's concert in Philadelphia was a success on every level that treated a few thousand fans to the stellar, albeit brief, return of an old favorite and left us all longing for more from these SF Bay-area originals.
