FAITH NO MORE
LIMP BIZKIT
Roseland New York, Friday September 19
3/5
Don Kaye
LIMP BIZKIT? Limp Dick might be a better name for this half-baked Korn clone. There's too many of these little bands running around right now, and the Bizkit represent the bottom of the barrel, all superficial posturing and nothing underneath.
The Roseland crowd evidently feel the same way, giving them possibly the worst reception seen at a New York rock show in a long time. Dead silence greets the finish of many of their meandering non-songs, with the band finally retreating to the relative safety of covers (George Michael's 'Faith' and a surreal Hound Dog'), and even then only garnering a feeble response. Lead singer Fred Durst gets more and more frustrated as the show wears on, constantly giving the audience the finger and pathetically yelling "F**k you!" as his bandmates stand there half-asleep. Limp indeed.
Faith No More take the stage in their current uniform of matching white shirts and black dress pants.
But despite their unified appearance, FNM radiate little onstage chemistry - they might as well be playing in separate glass booths. The legendary inter-band antipathy has been well documented over the years, and onstage they come across as seasoned pros doing a solid job, rather than a rock band truly interacting with each other and their audience.
Of course, there is no faulting Faith No More's music. Opener 'Collision' leads effortlessly into a punchy 'Midlife Crisis', which in turn stumbles into an electric 'The Gentle Art Of Making Enemies'. Relatively obscure tracks like
'Midnight Cowboy' and 'As The Worm Turns' offer reassurance that Faith No More are still not content to take the easy route and go for the hits. Even when they get to more familiar moments like 'Epic', 'Easy' and a manic 'We Care A Lot’, they're twisted into strange new shapes.
The disappointing reception for 'Album Of The Year' has led to the usual whispering about Faith No More's continued existence. And perhaps the band has run its course. But as the delicate, moving 'Just A Man' shimmers at show's end, you can't help but hope Faith No More might just find a way to make it work a little longer.
MOST ROCKING
MOMENT: Faith No More's 'Just A Man'
LEAST ROCKING
MOMENT: Limp Bizkit's entire set.
BEST ONSTAGE QUOTE: "Dinner? I just had a Japanese meal that would blow you away! What did you have?" - Mike Patton auditions for 'MasterChef'
VERDICT: Keeping the faith - just about.
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