REVIEW: Asian Dub Foundation plays La Haine at Band on the Wall

Will Stevenson | 22nd January 2018

Some things just go so well together that it becomes difficult to disentangle them. Matthieu Kassovitz 1995 French language film, La Haine, and four-piece experimental electronica act Asian Dub Foundation is one of those things.

From the opening shots following the news broadcasts, to the iconic “so far, so good,” line, to the surrealist Parisian moments, everything is perfectly soundtracked by the synth-laden, guitar heavy rock and dub infused re-score.

Whilst the group have been performing their version of the La Haine soundtrack since 2001, each second of the ninety-eight-minute film was performed with a true passion for the film that still shines as brightly in 2018.

The band, comprised of Steve Chandra Savale, John Pandit, Antiruddha Das, Aktar Ahmed, and Brian Fairbairn, use instruments including traditional percussion, electric guitar and electronic synthesisers to push boundaries, touching on big beat, trip hop and ragga whilst creating something almost entirely unique.

Watching the classic French drama in a room with hundreds of rabid fans is a different experience regardless; with laughing, clapping and shock from a (mostly) captive audience.

Vincent Cassel, Hubert Kounde and Said Taghmaoui’s central, naturalistic performances delight today just as they did nearly twenty years ago.

The only slight mistake with the projection of the film was leaving the subtitles at the bottom of the screen, meaning they were hard to make out for some in the all-standing crowd.

After the set, the band played for another hour, with tracks taken from throughout their discography. There’s a guest performance from flute-master Nathan Lee, who amazes the crowd with his world beating skills –  you never thought a flute could sound so cool.

Despite the often-unusual time signatures, instrumentation and rapped vocals, these tracks get the floor dancing; it’s a joyous release after the deep breath of La Haine.

The last date on the tour is Anson Rooms in Bristol on 26 January. More UK shows to follow in the second part of 2018.

Asian Dub Foundation will be headlining the brand new winter Festival84 in a very unique venue, the Olympic Village in the town of Jarhoina in Bosnia & Herzegovina on Saturday 17 March 2018 – organised by Exit Festival.

For more details on Asian Dub Foundation visit: asiandubfoundation.com