Hard-FiOxford ZodiacTuesday 18 OctoberEnthusiastic lead singer RichardArcher announced “We areHard-Fi! We love music, wehate racism!” at the beginning of whatlater became a rather remarkable setat The Zodiac. It pretty much set thetone for the night; that of an unabashed,undiluted celebration for ourcultural diversity. And refreshingly,there was not a hint of irony to befound in his sentiments, nor in thatof his band’s blistering arrangements.With a “unite against fascism” flag flyinghigh over the stage, the scene wasset for an expectedly short yet staggeringlyall-encompassing interpretationof their slim body of work.Clad in combat jackets, graphiclogo tees and dirty denim, they wereloud, brash and confident withoutbeing overtly styled or produced.After a booming intro of “Fuck theNazis, fuck the BNP, our new heroesHard-Fi,” ramming the political pointhome with requisite rock-star lackof subtlety, the band slammed intotheir opening number Middle EasternHoliday with a wide-eyed, franticenergy not dissimilar to a renditionof some chart-busting singalong at ateenyboppers’ gathering. Yes, Hard-Fimay veer towards the poptastic withtheir near-permanent fixture in theTop 10 over the summer, RichardArcher’s bona fide Smash Hits pin-upstatus and his band’s anthemic rousings,but there is certainly enough witto validate the superficiality.In fact, it was pretty difficult to spotthe cracks in the set’s surface, if therewere any. Richard Archer helmedthe performance with an uncommonvigour that cemented his senseof purpose in his lyrics. Sneering orsnarling, even sweating or seething,may in fact be more appropriatewords to use for what he displayed onstage. This infectious attitude alliedwith Hard-Fi’s trademark murderousbeats and potent pack pact poses weretruly brought to the fore in Feltham isSinging Out.The band’s highly familiar brandof suburban angst and satellite-townennuiwas never far from anyone’smind, at pains as they were to remindus in every available interlude. But sowhat if they laid on the “dead-end”histrionics slightly too thickly? Hard-Fi proved that they transcend suchfashion-forking in their incrediblyfocused and endearingly proud recitalswhich were powered out one afteranother. For once the mythology iswholly backed up by the music.Nowhere was this more prominentthan in the brass-neck breaks of CashMachine that launched a skunked uprendition of the White Stripes’ SevenNation Army. This was a seeminglycringeworthy combination on paper,but for some reason on the night therendition was positively convincingin its sincerity. Perhaps it was a resultof the same vigour that infused thenight’s pinnacle moment: the startling,crowd-crackling take on TiedUp Too Tight (surely a no-brainer fornext single) which saw The Zodiac’supper room throb to the force of fivehundred heads knocking and doublethe number of feet stomping up anddown.The beautiful contrast witnessedin the encore between the eruptingfrenzy of Living For the Weekend andthe soul-searching, acoustic guitar-ledStars of CCTV goes to prove why theirsmall hometown just could not takeHard-Fi. It is a statement of intentthat allows them all the more reasonto shout out loud about it on recordsto come.ARCHIVE: 3rd week MT 2005
