Live review: From Autumn To Ashes – Southampton Student Union, 14th January 2008

The way singer Francis Mark is gasping for air between songs, you’d think From Autumn For Ashes were playing the most important show of their career.

The reality is that they’re playing to a half-full hall in Southampton University’s Student Union, and struggling to get a reaction out of anyone beyond the fifty or so dedicated fans down the front.

It’s not for want of trying on the part of From Autumn To Ashes, though. To be fair, the two bands ahead of them on the bill were so average as to send the audience into a sort of waking coma – that whole pop-punk-with-keyboards-and-screaming thing has become formulaic almost overnight, and neither band has done anything interesting with the format.

Which leaves From Autumn To Ashes looking justifiably professional, in an entirely different league. Mark’s frantic screaming and leaping around looks natural, the result of genuine pent-up energy and passion rather than a series of rock poses practised in front of the mirror. Likewise, his bandmates attack their instruments with gusto, without sacrificing any of their incredible rhythmic precision.

That precision is the band’s hardcore roots showing through, and the secret to making the balance of melody and aggression work properly. It is the mastery of originators – because watching From Autumn To Ashes play live, you realise that they’re one of the bands that the rising tide of screamo clones have been desperately trying to imitate – and falling well short of.

Because conviction can’t be faked. The lack of ridiculous haircuts and fashion gimmicks is very telling – From Autumn To Ashes don’t need anything to distract people from their music, because it speaks for itself. Mark’s quick-change vocals are mirrored by the interlocking guitar work that switches from brutal beatdown chugging to momentary passages of sudden crystalline delicacy, turning on a dime and never dropping a beat.

It’s a furious and passionate performance – so much so that I found myself surprised at how small and calm Mark’s voice seemed between songs, gasping excluded. From Autumn To Ashes conjure up a genuine sense of velocity that only comes with serious dedication and a sense of purpose. Their many imitators could do with taking that lesson on board – it’s not just about what you play, but how and why you play it.