Fartbarf Show Review

To offer a fair review, I’ll begin by confessing that Saturday night’s Fartbarf performance kicked off as a train wreck.  Their unity was scattered, as though they weren’t all playing together toward the same goal, and as is common, their monkey masks proved hindering to elements of the live production, i.e., blocking vocals, knocking microphones down, blocking vision, and barring the smooth passage of cool beer down the throat.  It also didn’t help this predominately electronic group that about two or so songs into the set a circuit blew and left them in silence, the crowd shouting for “Luis” to fix the problem.  Now let me be extremely fair, Saturday night at Suzy’s Bar there were moments, the majority in fact, when everything came together and Fartbarf absolutely killed it!  ’Hero of Time’, ‘Play the Game’, and a couple other pieces I don’t know the names of, were totally soaring, heavy, jamming waves of sound.  And yet, as the South Bay would have it, the crowd favorite seemed to be an Iron Maiden cover that had been completely ‘Fartbarfed’ and electronicized.  (*Note: ‘electronicized’ is a fictitious term invented and utilized for this Fartbarf review.)

Okay, now the true essence of this performance.  From this reviewer’s perspective, and a biased, smiling fan I am, it is an honor to experience the ups and downs of really talented musicians.  In the wrong venue on perhaps not the best night, an amazing group like Fartbarf has a unique opportunity to demonstrate their flexibility, imagination, and raw artistic ability.  The freaky Apemen really pulled this night off.  The show was energetic, quirky, and as always, fun as hell.  I also sincerely respect their commitment to their exhilarating theatrics, never forgoing their masks on stage.  So a mic gets knocked, not all the vocals get through crystal clear, not all the keys are so easily seen, the beer is harder to swallow; but dammit, they remain committed to deliver their entire show, and I appreciate it.  And like I said before, when it all came together, when they blasted forth with unreal musical moments, when the planetary alignments achieved cosmic coalescence and they exploded from stage in all their glory, I for one am glad I was there for that phenomena that is the live Fartbarf experience.  Don’t miss their next show, and we’ll be sure to keep you updated when it is.

~Dirty Jeff