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les savy fav - credit Edwina Hay - thisisnotaphotograph.com
Lineup: Les Savy Fav
Date: 22/09/2007
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by Eamon Foley

Les Savy Fav are coming your way. You better watch out, you better not cry. But unlike our favourite balding, pot-bellied man with a beard, LSF’s vocalist Tim Harrington is more than a little crazy.

I say that after witnessing a sweat- and beer-soaked 550-capacity show, remarkable for Harrington’s rapid sartorial decline. He saunters on stage dressed as a top hat-wearing country gentleman and leaves in just a pair of blue-hued tighty-whiteys, having gradually shed his clothes during the set.

In between, he uses all manners of props – from containers of glitter to the balcony as climbing frame – in a riveting performance. Strutting around like he belongs on the cover of Men’s Fitness, Harrington might be more Beth Ditto than Justin Timberlake, but one show at a time he’s bringing sexy back in his own style. Although he’s more camp warble than honeyed vocal chords, as Sinatra crooned, he’s doing it his way.

The music itself is good, honest fun, but nothing original; the band is solid but a long way short of being as tight as Harrington’s Y fronts. To be frank, they’re probably also upstaged by a seven-year-old girl who jams onstage with her pink toy guitar having just been presented with a cheque for winning a recent LSF video competition. She looks a little confused as to what is going on but, with all her classmates tucked up in bed, is probably the most punk thing I’ve seen all year.

Check out her winning video

Over the last few years LSF have been building a big reputation for their live performances, and rightly so. Harrington is manic – using props in whatever manner springs to mind; dressing up, dressing down and simply undressing. He regularly involves the crowd - be it to help with the vocals, tearing through punters left and right, front and back or getting them to fellate his mic. Whatever he throws out there is lapped up, crowd members like kids on Santa Claus’ knee.

Recently signed to Wichita in the UK, with a new album (Let’s Stay Friends) and heading to local shores in October, LSF are on a roll. Their catchy tunes aren’t groundbreaking, but with a live show most mothers wouldn’t want you to attend, they’re definitely worth seeing. When this Santa comes to town, whatever you do don’t go to bed early.

Photograph: Edwina Hay

Post a new comment on this review

Les savy fav in "definitely worth seeing" shocker

It reads like something out of the observer music monthly.
Have you even heard of les savy fav before?
Do you even like music?


This responce: expected

But.
Do you not think that newcomers want a little more FACT than the HEART us long-timers have for the Fav?


Responce?

Whoops.


Les Savy Fav

are going to gain a whole new audience - me for one - with Let's Stay Friends, so have a little patience and bear with us folks...


hold on a sec...

so you're saying the DiS take on Les Savy Fav is hard FACT...no room for opinion round these parts eh?


Ha ha...

YES.
OBEY.
Etc.

LSF are so great. All words on LSF = worthwhile.


just re read the article

and can't believe what i just saw...

"The music is good, honest fun, but nothing original"

that'd be like discovering Minor Threat and complaining they sound like a whole bunch of hardcore bands :)


stoopid review

great band


i think

LSF are going to gain a whole new audience on account of them having a publicity/marketing machine behind them for the first time. the new album isn't any better then before. the live show I guess is just the same. they've always been one of the best bands in the world, it's just that there's money to back it up. and your average music magazine likes being told what to like by the people with advertising spends rather then deciding on what's good themselves... DiS ofcourse does not fall into that category





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