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There’s nothing small about a 5FDP show. Not the riffs, the drums nor the roar from the crowd when they took the stage as the intro finished and the curtain dropped.
The humongous Skull and Crossbones hanging directly above Jeremy Spencer’s drum kit was definitely not small either. He must have tons of faith in the production crew to sit directly under that all night.
The sheer size of the giant production they have brought over to Europe with them really made a difference. Kicking off with Lift me Up, Never Enough and Wash It All Away accompanied with an incredible light show (the likes of which a lot of bands would have toned down for an overseas trip) turned it into a Hollywood blockbuster of a show that proved to be the perfect pre-Christmas treat for the assembled Knuckleheads.
Those lucky Knuckleheads that had turned up to the Leeds Arena adorned with a handprint on their faces were given yet another Christmas treat when they were invited onstage by Ivan whilst they played a raucous rendition of Burn MF – one guy in luminous green pants stole the show by showcasing his best Russian dancing.
A mid-set acoustic break saw Ivan Moody and Jason Hook lead fans through I Apologize, Wrong Side of Heaven and Remember Everything and in between firing party poppers at Jason, Ivan took a minute of everybody’s night to acknowledge and apologise for his ‘complete f’ing meltdown’ of 8 months ago which saw him temporarily separate from the band. It was a very touching and sincere moment that everybody in the room appreciated greatly.
Had that stayed a permanent position the band would have suffered immensely and it’s great that not only has he resolved any issues he had but also, that his band mates have found it in themselves to forgive, forget and move on. They are definitely a much stronger unit for it.
It was then back to the full show with bass giant Chris Kael stalking the stage alongside Zoltan Bathory and Ivan in his seventh or eighth different t-shirt of the night. Ivan even led the seated fans in a Mexican wave, which clearly made his night.
Closing up with several tracks from their newly released A Decade Of Destruction Greatest Hits album they sent everyone into the night with their ears ringing. For many it was the perfect show to finish off the year and head into the festive break.
Hopefully it won’t be too long until 5FDP are back with new material and even more incredible show for us all to witness.
Click here for a full set of photos from the show.