Friendly Fires

Some facts about St Albans: the Campaign For Real Ale started there in 1972; it’s home to the Royal National Rose Society; and a number of episodes of Inspector Morse were filmed there. In other words, it’s suburbia writ large. Ed Macfarlane, Edd Gibson and Jack Savidge didn’t really have much choice but to form a band. Say hello to Friendly Fires, born of commuter belt boredom, now one of the most exciting new bands in the country. Last year, a super limited seven-inch, Paris, was judged to be the single of the week in both the NME and The Guardian. They were the first unsigned band to appear on Channel 4’s Transmission show. Radio 1 DJs Zane Lowe, Colin Murray and Rob Da Bank are fans. Now signed to XL, they count Radiohead, The White Stripes and Adele as their labelmates. It’s not hard to see what all the fuss is about. The aforementioned Paris is a deft combination of clattering percussion and a blissed out, hum-along hook, In The Hospital combines a driving punk funk groove with an unstoppable pop melody and Macfarlane’s joyous vocals in the chorus of Skeleton Boy give the song such a lift you could dust under the band’s amps. Then there’s the brilliantly... more...