FIDLAR leave Dingwalls dripping with sweat

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Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Everyone forgets about Dingwalls. It’s dingy little basement setting in the heart of Camden lost in many people’s minds to the bygone era of The Libertines et all. But no more. Last night LA’s FIDLAR took to its stage, ripped it up and left if not only begging for more but with a new lease of life, one that you could literally watch dripping from the ceiling.

Running through the intoxicating frenzy of tracks like ‘Cheap Beer’, ‘No Waves’ and the Kate Nash featuring ‘Awkward’ it took the four-piece a matter of seconds to transform the entire lower level into a chaotic mosh pit, one which they themselves weren’t even able to distinguish from the stage. It was like watching a 40 minute stage invasion battle, with security guards standing to attention pushing kids back as they relentless launched themselves from its platform onto the swirling arms below.

During ‘Max Can’t Surf’ an entire portion of the audience disappeared from our view, we can only presume they were trampling one another on the floor, whilst a kid ran past us holding a tissue to his nose, moments earlier he had been running away from the masses holding a bloody nose, now he was running back in. The band even have to ask the “fucking rowdy white kids” to “turn it down a notch.”

When the house lights went up it didn’t look like an encore was on the cards, but as half the venue emptied out the other half loitered around and were rewards with a three song encore, the finale of which could not have been better. A cover of Blink 182′s ‘Dammit’, a stage diving, crowd-surfing security guard and the epic moral message “drop out of school, start a band.”

Setlist

Cheap beer
Stoked and Broke
White on White
No Waves
No Ass
Max Can’t Surf
Whore
Awkward
Blackout Stout
I Don’t Care About You (Fear cover)
Got No Money
Carnivore Girls
Punks Are Finally Taking Acid
Wait For The Man
Cocaine
Wake Bake Skate
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West Coast
Lowdi (CCR cover)
Damn It (Blink 182 cover)