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Cape Town - After more than 25 years, US heavy metal band Fear Factory finally made their way to South African shores.
I had the opportunity to go see them live in Cape Town at The Assembly on Saturday, and it was an amazing experience.
Local bands Ill System and Boargazm tore up the stage and represented the local scene very well.
Thirty minutes before Fear Factory was supposed to play, the crowd already started amassing at the stage in Assembly to secure their spots for the show. The mood was very energetic. The crowd consisted of both young and old. Everyone couldn't wait to see Fear Factory and spoke amongst themselves about which songs they wished Fear Factory would play.
And then finally, they started playing. The crowd went crazy when they walked onto the stage.
They opened with older songs, from their Demanufacture album, moving onto their newest album Genexus, going back to their oldest album Soul of a New Machine, and finished off strong with Replica from their Demanufacture album. In total they played 16 songs, for a show of just over an hour and a half. With every song they played, it seemed that they checked off the bucket list of someone in the crowd, playing the song that that person wanted to hear the most.
Experience really shined through in Fear Factory's performance. Every note was flawless, and they really had the crowd going all the way through.
Guitarist Dino Cazares was sitting in a chair for the entire performance, and only at the end did we find out that Dino broke his foot whilst touring in Australia. Despite this, he played an amazing show and managed to have a great stage presence even whilst sitting. Drummer Mike Heller hit every note with precision, and kept the beat going strong. Bassist Tony Campos kept the rythm going with a very deep and crunchy tone. And lastly, Burton C Bell's voice did not falter once, he hit both his screams and his cleans very well.
The audience really seemed to enjoy the show, and the band fed off of that energy. The crowd chanted along to all songs, everyone seemed to know every song. Mosh pits broke out with every song, but they never seemed to last very long. Burton C Bell kept pointing the mic to the crowd, and this just made them chant along harder.
In summary, it was an amazing experience and Fear Factory promised at the end of the show that they would be back in South Africa. After the performance they gave, I'm sure that South Africa would welcome them back with open arms.
(Photos: Neville Lennox, Channel24)
