Stiff Little Fingers at the Forum

In a venue that has seen many pairs of famous feet tread its stage, tonight saw The Forum awash with clashing guitars and angry vocals, as fans of pop punk quartet Stiff Little Fingers flocked to Kentish Town for a dose of musical cynicism. This Belfast band know their crowd and have definitely found their audience.

With a sound comparable to Green Day circa 1994, Stiff Little Fingers attempt to replicate a well-known and loved atmosphere of dissent soundtracked to punk rock chords. This band is neatly characterised by some of the titles of their songs, like Barbed Wire Love and When We Were Young, but this nostalgia is unsurprising, considering that they started out whilst at school in 1977, and after a split of five years, and subsequent reformation, have been together (in various combinations) ever since.

Playing a set that spans decades of work and material, including Straw Dogs and a cover of Bob Marley’s Johnny Was, Stiff Little Fingers draw from each and every moment of their musical career. There is some real variation when it comes to material, each song coloured with their sound.

Though they offer little of what we haven’t seen before, you can’t deny that they do it well, and it is nice to see a band not entirely made up of malnourished 14-year-old boys. They’re a talented act with a very definite sound, whose fans know and like what they hear. If you want integrity of sound, Stiff Little Fingers have got it in buckets.

 

Phoebe Person

For further information and future events visit Stiff Little Fingers’ website here.

Watch Stiff Little Fingers play When We Were Young live here: