Concert Reviews

 Fakeba and John Fryer welcome everyone to their unique and special electro/synth-pop world.

I would like to start this text, by saying, that I am thankful and really honored to be among the few international media representatives, that were invited by DarkMad and Manuel Angel Gonzalez, in order to be present in this unique's project presentation to the world. 

DarkMad productions had scheduled this concert to be presented during last year's DarkMad festival in Madrid. Several issues prevented John Fryer to travel to Spain and therefore the show was cancelled. However DarkMad and Manuel, that believes so deeply in the potentials of this project, organized an extra event for the duo, in order to be presented to Spain and after this, to the rest of the world.

The journey started a few days earlier, the time that Manuel Angel Gonzalez told me his idea and the scheduled dates, and invited me to take part as an international media representative. As a music lover, myself, and a man who is always looking for new music projects and ideas, I could not be more excited, and I immediately responded positively to his invitation and this unique experience had begun.

I began to look for more info about the project of Fakeba and John Fryer. I was amazed, to find out that this legendary producer of bands like Cocteau Twins, This Mortal Coil of 4AD, or even Nine Inch Nails, Stabbing Westward and HIM, has joined the Queen of Africa, Fakeba to form this special project. The duo combined the, tones of, music experience of John Fryer and the unique voice and style of Fakeba, and the result is a new form of synth pop, which includes elements of Fakeba's country and especially with the use of the Wolof language in lyrics. 

Prior to this event ElektroSpank | FMA collaborated with the beloved friends and partners of the amazing Spanish webzine, El Garaje De Frank, and together, we made an interview with the two artists, conducted by the members of El Garaje De Frank, in Madrid. You can read the interview here.

 

So, the day came and I landed in Madrid to attend this beautiful event. The venue was La Boite, a really nice place in Madrid, and the concert was scheduled to start at 19:00. A few minutes after 19:00, Fakeba and John Fryer came up on stage accompanied with the two live members of the project, the producer Big Toxic and Myxluydy on the synths. Fakeba and John Fryer took their positions in front of the audience and the show had just begun.

Since the first notes it was obvious that the two main members of the project, Fakeba and John Fryer were absolutely enjoying it and the chemistry between them it was great. Along with the two of them, the two live members, seemed to have completely fit into this project and the result was a show full of energy. The show was dedicated to the presentation of the new album, "JOTNA" from Fakeba and John Fryer. Although the most of the songs were unknown to many people attended the show, this did not prevent anyone to get into the rhythm and the synth, electro pop melodies of the band.

Fakeba is an amazing performer, combining her vocal skills with a beautiful movement on stage, which carries an amount of the African tradition. John Fryer was the person that you could see that he is carrying a lot of experience and his guitar riffs gave an extra and different nuance in the strong beats and synth lines of the two musicians, Big Toxic and Myxluydy. The set included the tracks of the upcoming album and starting with "Ndanane" and the uptempo "Donsoba", the audience quickly got into the dancing mood. The midtempo, with atmospheric start, "Gueth" followed and then the powerful "Diodable". Fakeba was great in all these songs while, she used several moves and tones of her African origins.

The concert kept this high energetic ambience with the "Rave", a potential club hit, followed by the two tracks that were already released and known to the most of the people in Boite. "Mother Africa" 's tunes filled the room and the electro beats triggered everyone to dance to the rhythm of the song - anthem to the African world. Last was the first single from the new album, "DaKar". An amazing electro pop song, containing many elements of the African world and music like the drums.

 "DaKar" closed the concert and the feedback from the audience was amazing. Most of the people, were fascinated by the vocals and the energy of Fakeba, which was perfectly matched with the music of John Fryer.

A show that, definitely, establishes the project of Fakeba and John Fryer in the electro/synth pop scene, and it creates high expectations and raises the anticipation for the album and for future shows. The show for Fakeba and John Fryer has just begun. And one thing sure is that, day by day they are going to be even better and we can expect some really good things from them.

Info:

https://fakeba.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/fakebaofficial

https://www.instagram.com/fakebaofficial

https://www.facebook.com/pg/John.Fryer.Official