Live
< O Fracas at Buffalo Bar
words by Danielle Goldstein
A guy with a peacock feather wedged in his Afro is having a dance-off with a blonde girl next to a huddle of tipsy office workers, who are proceeding to steal the percussion instruments from the stage. As far as gigs go, this one is pretty surreal, and Leeds four-piece O Fracas have no intention of upping the rational stakes as they start playing odd pieces of rope with wooden shells on.The band skips straight into ‘Moth to a Flame’ with offbeat rhythms and angular riffs. Could it be that we’ve unearthed the new Foals? After all, they share the same throbbing beats and cutting guitars. They even flop over their instruments like Foals do. But they have a far more melodic vocal tie-in to balance out their jerky, tug-o-war tempos.
They battle through ‘Factfinding’, notes flying in all directions, and climax on ‘Zeroes and Ones’ with help from the audience, who have all acquired maracas, bells and tambourines. O Fracas are a band you can’t go to see without getting a little – ahem –rattled!
Originally appeared in volume 1, issue 31 of Loud & Quiet magazine
