American rock band Filter started life in 1993 in Cleveland, Ohio, by singer Richard Patrick and guitarist and programmer Brian Liesegang. They formed when Patrick wanted to start his own band after leaving Nine Inch Nails as their touring guitarist. Brian left the band in 1997 and Filter are very much Richard Patrick`s group these days. The band arrive in Birmingham a third of the way through an eighteen date tour of Europe this month which goes under the banner of “The Algorithm Tour”, named after the band`s eighth studio album released last August.
Three tracks are shared from said release tonight with `The Drowning` a track that has an edgy wistful dreaminess about it, the much more insistent `For the Beaten` and reflective `Obliteration`. But tonight`s set opens with `You Walk Away` from `The Amalgamut` album, which is over twenty years old, but the pounding number still holds up.
The lighting tonight is what I’d call atmospheric and at times it`s a little difficult to see the band clearly.
This evenings hour long show included numbers from across their career with tracks like the swaying `Jurassitol`, absorbing U2 tinged `Take A Picture`, blistering `Captain Bligh` and delightfully heavy `Drug Boy` getting the loudest cheers.
The intense `Hey Man Nice Shot` from debut album `Short Bus` gets aired before the singer confirms that the band don`t engage in the charade of an encore and finish on `So I Quit` a scorching diatribe and another from `The Amalgamut` album.
Jonathan Radtke, Bobby Miller and Tosh Peterson ably supported Richard Patrick tonight and this quartet certainly seem to have a rhythm to them. It was an interesting show with numbers that had a real subtleness and sensitivity at times then moved to a much more searing intensity with others.
A short but enjoyable and memorable gig and one that I’ll fondly reminisce on.
