I Just Read About That…

[ATTENDED: May 28, 2024] Francis of Delirium 

I was supposed to see Francis of Delirium open for The Districts back in 2022, but I wound up taking my son and his friends to see Ice Nine Kills instead.  I didn’t mind missing The Districts because I had seen them just a few months earlier, but I was bummed about missing Francis.

And here they were two years later on a headlining tour.  They had just played Boston Calling but tonight was their first proper show and they were ready for it.

I had also snagged tickets to see Negativland tonight.  A very different experience.  I was torn about which to go to see because I love Negativland’s culture jamming.  But I thought that Francis of Delirium was a better, more fun choice.  And I was so right!

I had listened to FoD’s new album Lighthouse, which is more mellow than their previous couple of EPs.  So I thought the show would be enjoyable but kind of chill.  But WOW, did they rock!  All of the grunge sensibilities of the early EPs were employed on the new songs as well and the whole night was like a perfect callback to the best elements of the best grunge songs, all with a new perspective.

Francis of Delirium is from Luxembourg (main Delirium, Jana Bahrich, was born in Antwerp but lived in Switzerland and Canada before her family settled in Luxembourg.   Her  backing band Denis Schumacher (drums) and Jeff Hennico (bass) are both native to Luxembourg.  I don’t know really anything about Luxembourg, but it seems so exotic.  And apparently being an indie rock band is REALLY exotic in Luxembourg, so they are like the most exotic band around, I guess.

The trio came on stage and Jana played am introductory guitar part using a metal slide–a sound not featured on the record.  But it was just a cool opening intro before she tossed the slide on the ground and they jumped into “Alone Tonight.”

I’m not sure what recent song really make me perk up my ears and find out who wrote such a great song, but I think it was “Blue Tuesday,” which hits all of my buttons for a great song.  Jana joked that it was a Tuesday night, perfect for playing the song.  It sounded even better than on record.

The new album has 11 song and they played 9, also mixing in some from the earlier EPs. 

After a few more songs, they played the quiet “Ballet Dancers” and that’s when I realized that the woman behind me was singing along quietly.  The first few songs were all pretty loud and rocking (no feedback, just loud guitars) and I hadn’t realized that there were people who really knew the record well enough to sing along.  I had assumed the show would sell out and am a little sad for them that it hadn’t.  But the crowd was hugely supportive and made a ton of noise between songs.

I was blown away by the rocking “The Funhouse” from their latest EP.  The guitars were just great.  Bahrich apparently knows how to play several different instruments (like French horn) and her musical skill is fantastic.

During a slight pause, she introduced the rest of the band and their pet peeves.  Jess doesn’t like banana peels.  Denis doesn’t like when people don’t say bless you after you sneeze.  Jana doesn’t like when people clap (or pop gum) in a car.  She doesn’t like loud noises–which is why she plays in a band.

They finished the set with four songs from the album.  Each one a little different but each as compelling as the previous one.  Something’s Changed had great backing vocals from Jeff.  The rest of the show had various backing tracks playing.  I don’t really know how they were done–backing harmony vocals and occasional synths or extra guitars.  Were they triggered by someone or were they just able to play perfectly in synch with backing tracks?  I don’t know.

For the final song, Jana asked if we would sing the chorus melody.  We did and Jeff said that it was good, but it needed to be louder but stay pretty.  I think we did a good job (Philly has good singers I must say).  I had forgotten how much I like this song  that closes out the album and gets bigger and more intense and it moves along.  The audience was a great extra.

The band left for an encore break which was really short and then came back out.  Jana said they normally play only one song, but someone offered them a million dollars (a million imaginary dollars, she confirmed) to play “Ashamed.”  Which they did.  And I want to thank the person who requested it because it was great, and it kept them on stage for a few minutes longer.

Then they closed out the show with the absolute banger from their debut EP, “Quit Fucking Around.”  It is catchy as anything and features that phrase as an easy to sing/scream chorus.  It’s only a shame the song is so short.

I am so glad I went to this show, both because it was awesome and because I have to assume that this band is going  to take off and the next time they play Philly I won’t be able to see the shoes they were wearing while they set up their gear, before they changed into stage clothes.  (Jana happened to be wearing the same Merrels as I was).

1. Alone Tonight £
2. Blue Tuesday £
3. Let It All Go ≅
4. Real Love £
5. Circles ∞
6. Ballet Dancers (Never Love Again) £
7. The Funhouse ∇
8. Cliffs £
9. I Think I’m Losing ≅
10. Who You Are £
11. First Touch £
12. Something’s Changed £
13. Give It Back to Me £
    encore
14. Ashamed ∞
15. Quit Fucking Around ∞

∞ All Change EP (2020)
≅ Wading EP (2021)
∇ The Funhouse EP (2022)
£ Lighthouse (2023) [did not play Want You, Starts to End]