TVD Live Shots: AFI, The Chain Gang of 1974, and Souvenirs at the Fox Theater, 1/21

The last few years have been painfully quiet for AFI fans. The touring cycle for 2013’s Burials was followed by silence and then more silence. But since the band started teasing the prospect of new material late last year, the anticipation has continued to build so that when a new album and a tour were finally announced, fans snapped up tickets quickly. Fast forward to January 21, 2017 … AFI’s brand new self-titled release has been out for a day and the lobby at Oakland’s Fox Theater is abuzz. Three years has clearly been too long for the hometown crowd.

The audience was quiet but thoughtful for openers Souvenirs and The Chain Gang of 1974’s moody pop which may have had a few people wondering if AFI was going to switch things up style-wise. But as their set neared, chants of “through our bleeding, we are one” echoed from the audience and anticipation peaked. Any concern likely was tossed aside.

The band strolled casually onto the stage and frontman Davey Havok perched himself on top of his riser as the intro rolled to “I Hope You Suffer,” an unexpected yet powerful opener that made the room lose their shit, in no small part due to Havok’s vocals which arguably sounded stronger than ever.

The more observant folks in the room may have noticed the super-long mic chord carefully curled up at the edge of the stage. Not half-way through the first song, Davey was perched on top of the general admission pit wailing as people tried to crowd surf their way to him. Back on stage, the band launched right into “Girl’s Not Grey” and the crowd surged even more forward.

AFI is a band that’s always been a four-piece and probably always will be. There’s simply no need for anyone to fill in the gaps when you’ve got a guy like Jade Puget on guitar who’s able to seamlessly weave the intricate leads with the power of a big chorus of a song like “Beautiful Thieves.” The setlist no doubt covered the hits, but with only 65 minutes there was no time for the deep cuts. In fact, even with only playing 3 new songs, there was no space left for anything prior to “The Art of Drowning.”

A.F.I.

With really no room up front for a circle pit, the general admission floor instead surged from side to side, the occasional swarm of flashlights highlighting where people were forced to reluctantly tap out. That didn’t seem to dampen spirits as the room sang along loudly to every word. When AFI finally wrapped the night with “Silver and Cold,” Havok could have easily set down the mic and let the crowd run with it. They were that loud.

Welcome back AFI. You have been missed.

SETLIST
I Hope You Suffer
Girl’s Not Grey
Aurelia
The Leaving Song Pt. II
Dumb Kids
Beautiful Thieves
Ever and a Day
Medicate
Snow Cats
Bleed Black
17 Crimes
Love Like Winter
The Days of the Phoenix
The Killing Lights
Miss Murder