O Fracas @ Cockpit
By Cathy Simpson
A common figure in the Arts is Everyman - he may seem unremarkable in many ways but there's always something more for us to discover about him. Tonight four Everyman figures ascend the stage, but half an hour later when they leave they are four extremely exceptional men indeed.
There is a lot that makes O Fracas special, at first you're drawn in by a drummer who makes Keith Moon look restrained, but as the set progresses the front line have grabbed you too. The whole thing is extraordinary because they're all precociously young. Certainly too young to be making elaborately crafted rock songs that gallop out of the speakers like a charging cavalry. The climax to this comes when frontman Ben takes to some primal pounding on a spare tom, as the bassist smashes a cymbal, both of them accompanied by the most possessed drummer in Leeds. Everyman they're definitely not.
O Fracas' set may not appear to have an immediate catchiness, but don't be fooled. 'Eyes in the Back of Your Head' lodges in your brain, and new single 'Zeros and Ones' is sung by girls in the toilets after the gig as they squeal about how great O Fracas are.
If Everyman is a regular, average character with no outstanding features then O Fracas are his antithesis. They are four supremely confident young men who will blast your eardrums and shiver your spine with a set that shows you exactly how remarkable they are.
