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 FUTURE OF THE LEFT frontman ANDY FALKOUS warns DARRAGH MURRAY about the perils of travelling from Wales to play rock gigs in the middle of an Australian summer.
Andy ‘Falco’ Falkous may be a verbose and charming singer/guitarist from Wales, but he may also be a masochist. He takes perverse enjoyment in flying halfway around the world to play high-energy rock music in Australian venues during the middle of summer.
Having been here numerous times over the past decade, initially as part of legendary punk group Mclusky but more recently as Future Of The Left, Falkous assures me the timing of these gigs is entirely deliberate. Reflecting on a particularly brutal show at The Tote in Melbourne, he reminisces.
“Somebody who went to one of our shows there claimed that he lost six or seven kilos, which is pretty amazing. That’s like a 10th of your body weight. It’s like high altitude training. It’s like a major sporting event to come and watch Future Of The Left or Mclusky play.”
Indeed, Falkous has played here under some perilous circumstances. He recalls his first experience in front of an Australian audience – which happened to be at The Zoo in 2004 when he fronted Mclusky – learning that long-haul international air travel, alcohol and humidity may not be ideal bedfellows.
“We got in the day before and obviously I wasn’t so much affected by jet lag, I was fucking raped in the soul by it. I woke up at four in the morning and I had the amazing idea of drinking myself back to sleep.” Falkous reveals, “By the time I went on stage, I was demented. I think I actually fainted after the show, which was quite an achievement ‘cause I’d never done that before. It was so hot that night, it was insane.”
Despite these experiences, Falkous is pleased to be returning, readily acknowledging Australia as a bastion of support for Future Of The Left. “We love playing shows to people who, if they don’t appreciate it, do a bloody good impression of appreciating it,” he says.
Recent line-up changes have heralded a new chapter in the group’s career. Earlier this year, bassist Kelson Mathias left the band and was eventually replaced by Australian Julia Ruzicka. Furthermore, in October, Falkous and drummer Jack Egglestone revealed the addition of another guitarist to the group, drafting in the enigmatic Jimmy Watkins, whom Falkous believes will be a crowd favourite.
“To say he is a character would be something of an understatement, but we definitely haven’t got him on stage and into the band just to behave like a performing clown.” Falkous explains, “We pick on him a lot in the band, which is fantastic because now Jack’s not the victim.”
Falkous assures me that these new additions should not be a cause for alarm amongst long time fans, stating that the extra guitarist adds a new dynamic to their older material.
“All the songs have been improved by having a fourth member. We’re playing a bunch of songs that we simply couldn’t play before because of the limitations of being a three-piece.”
FUTURE OF THE LEFT play The Zoo on Monday Jan 3, 2011. 2009 album TRAVELS WITH MYSELF AND ANOTHER is available through 4AD/Remote Control. www.futureoftheleft.com
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