Switchfoot & Fiction Plane @ The Brickworks, Chico, Ca
Dana Hocking
summer 2003
The Brick Works was packed by the time I showed up last Tuesday, but something was different. The crowd was lacking its usual allotment of depressed emo kids frowning at their black Converse Chucks (as medical science recently discovered, enjoying anything causes them to burst into flames).
Hailing from England, Fiction Plane was kind enough to kick off the night with their decidedly upbeat incarnation of contemporary rock. Unfortunately, opening bands have the particular challenge of keeping their set diverse and interesting enough to hold the attention of an audience that didn’t come to hear them in the first place, a task at which most groups choose to fail miserably. Fiction Plane, however, did not. From the first few chords of their powerful opening piece, "Everything Will Never Be Okay," it wasn’t hard to tell that they were going to be worth watching.
"We’re glad to be here and pretend we’re not from England," said Fiction Plane’s frontman, Joe Sumner, a few songs into their set with the crowd becoming more and more impressed at the consistent quality and simple honesty of the music. As a nice touch, piano and acoustic guitar rounded out a few of the stronger numbers and kept the sonic palette from growing stale, while Joe’s impressive vocals kept it congruent. Their show concluded as he jumped off the kick drum and the band pounded out a few final chords, letting the lights hit black just as the last note fell silent. A good feeling was in the air during the usual intermission so the crowd could check out the merchandise tables while the stage was being set for the evening’s headliners, Switchfoot.
http://synthesis.net/music/feature.php?fid=3125
