LIVE FROM THE PIT: Faetooth, Coltaine and Lemondaze

Heading out for their second headline tour, many fans were lucky enough to catch LA-based fairy doom band FAETOOTH at their London show this Valentine’s Day. In celebration of their latest album Labrythine, the band were joined by post-rock quartet LEMONDAZE and post metal four-piece COLTAINE, both of whom also recently added to their collection of sound. 

Under pink and yellow lights, Cambridge born and London based shoegazers LEMONDAZE kicked off the night. Playing from their EP subtext, released only two months ago, Rosie’s vocals were perfectly layered over heavy guitars, guided by the loud drum beats. Seamless tempo changes and tight instrumental interludes purposefully peppered in the set hooked the crowd. Their set was short, but certainly packed a punch, leaving fans with a hunger for more.  

COLTAINE are no strangers to commanding a room. With around a hundred played shows under their belts, this Germanic four piece knows very well how to grab the room's attention.  Summoning listeners into a doom ritual, lead vocalist Julia Frash emerged on stage. Veiled in the darkness of her hooded jacket, silence fell on the crowd as the haunting sound of bells from Tiefe Wasser filled the room. Building up the tempo, this quartet delivered a tight, well thought out performance. It moved with the grungy sound of the previous act, blending folky vocals to create something darker on the stage.   

As if traversing deeper into a dark forest of sound, the band’s ability to seamlessly switch from smooth vocal extensions to guttural screams kept the set energised and fresh. Like a rapunzel of metal, Julia Frash’s headbanging brought a fiery, cadent energy that transfused to the crowd, who eagerly lapped up the sound. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nytv1O2yvG8

Closing out their UK/EU tour, with London as their penultimate show, FAETOOTH mastered the stage as their own. Before the trio took to the stage,  the crowd was treated to MOZART’s Requiem in D Minor. A song synonymous with judgement, death and a mass for the dead, this set the scene for the band's own hauntingly beautiful masterpieces. Opening with the first track from their sophomore album, Iron Gate, a crescendo of Rah Kanan's drums built up steadily and quickly to a guttural release of vocal sound. 

Before returning to the sounds from their first album, Remnants of the Vessel, FAETOOTH guided the enthusiastic audience through the first part of Labrinthine. Echoing vocals and flawless harmonies were met with wild cheers from the crowd, and rightly so. Each track locked followers into a captivating trance, where the songs seamlessly fused together and the room collectively moved to the heavy rhythms. Often, singers Jenna Garcia and Ari May turned to each other, playing for each other as much as they were playing for the crowd. 

"We're gonna get sad, and then we’re gonna get angry” Jenna Garcia instructed the crowd, slowing the energy down to the more melancholic She Cast a Shadow. The slow guitar riffs wove around the steady drum beats, measured and unhurried. It was as if the instruments were holding their breath, waiting, until breaking into a powerful exhale of layered vocals evoking spirits from otherworldly plains.  

Closing out the set filled with rage, fan favourite Echolalia blasted through the room.  As if waiting for permission, the crowd took this as a sign to really let loose under the powerful bursts of the heavy strobe lights. 

FAETOOTH brought a strong catalogue of sound. Their set flowed effortlessly, each song a strong statement -  a showcase of whimsical metal doom. This night was certainly a love letter to the ethereal, the melancholic and ominous rage of metal.  

Words: Mary Horner

Photos: Atoosa Salamat