AFI - Val Air Ballroom - Des Moines, IA - 02.12.07
Posted by James Munson on 03.01.2007
On the second leg of their Decemberunderground tour, this California quartet marched through a brief, but ferocious, hour-long set of material from their two most-recent albums.
There's not a great deal to do on a Monday night in Des Moines, Iowa when the temperatures are sub-zero and the forecast calls for five to nine inches of snow. While the weather didn't get worse until later on that night, that didn't keep the 3/4 full Val Air Ballroom attendees from traveling in the snow to get a glimpse of Davey Havok & crew (The Dear & Departed and Sick Of It All opened the show). A majority of the crowd was ruled by kids and many of them came wearing black clothing, make-up, and eyeliner. It was difficult to look around and not spot a concertgoer wearing an AFI shirt and for good reason. Even though their sound has become more mainstream and less skater-punk over the course of the last few albums, AFI's fans (dubbed "The Despair Faction") are probably the most loyal, dedicated fans I've seen for a band that used to do just fine in the underground circuit.
Now AFI play to larger audiences in clubs and large theatres and their stage show reflects that change. The drums, microphone stands, risers, and strobe light holders were all white and the band arrived on stage dressed in all black, accordingly. Illuminated by a single spotlight, Davey Havok sang the opening lines to Decemberunderground opener "Prelude 12/21" while pulling his hair out of his eyes. The crowd belted back at the top of their lungs while drummer Adam Carson pounded his kick drum along to the "We Will Rock You"-style melody. Nearing the song's conclusion, Havok jumped off the drum riser as the band immediately tore through a ferocious version "Girls Not Grey" from 2003’s Sing the Sorrow. The pace didn’t slow down from there.
Mainly focusing their performance on tunes from Sing the Sorrow and Decemberundergound, AFI certainly did not disappoint. Their newest album, in particular, has a more digital, synth-heavy texture that sounds full and vibrant live, even though it may not carry the spontaneity and rawness of older, punkier tunes like “This Secret Ninja” or “Kung-Fu Devil”. While frantic-paced tunes like “Kill Caustic” and “Dancing Through Sunday” drove the crowd into a frenzy, anthemic tracks like “Love Like Winter” and “Silver and Cold” (with its “Your sins into me!” chorus) echoed clearly throughout the ballroom. While guitarist Jade Puget added remarkable intensity to set staples like “The Leaving Song Pt. 2”, Havok thanked the crowd several times and executed his part as a gracious frontman with glitz and charm.
Preceding the two-song encore of “God Called In Sick Today” and “Miss Murder”, Adam Carson kicked into a drum fill that ultimately started “Song 2”, the Blur cover that AFI played at the stroke of midnight on MTV”s New Years Eve. Havok’s nasal voice may not be a match for Damon Albarn’s British drawl, but it was enough to rev up the crowd enough before exiting into the ongoing blizzard outside. At a little over an hour for set time (most likely due to an 11:00 curfew), the show ended rather abruptly and skimmed over a few AFI core songs like “Days of the Phoenix”. Still, having played everywhere from basements to small clubs to the Warped Tour is no easy feat for a four-piece punk band from California. It’s hard to tell which direction their sound will evolve on future records, but it’s certain that the Despair Faction will be with them every step of the way.
The 411: Although their setlist chiefly embraced their two major-label releases, AFI put on a solid performance and, at times, were vocally over-powered by the mostly-teenage crowd. Justifying a rapidly-growing fanbase, AFI are vastly superior to almost every other “Hot Topic Punk” band in existence and their powerfully emotional live show attests to their importance.
