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The Fucking Prostitutes @ Notting Hill Arts Club
By: Saba Haider
Photo: Nicole KaiThe Fucking Prostitutes
August 8, 2008
London, United Kingdom
It's so important for the Western music-listening masses to look past CSS when the term "Brazilian band" is flitted about in conversation. And if anyone has proven there are new musical wonders from São Paulo, Brazil, it's The Fucking Prostitutes. Unlike CSS, these guys are not at all tired of being sexy. Besides, if any band has a story behind their epic London gig this week, it's this group of Paulistas.
London's indie-loving Death Disco night crowd at the Notting Hill Arts Club was sweetly pleasured with a surprise performance by the São Paulo quintet, who were added to the bill at the last minute. The guys were booked to play two nights at Camden's Dublin Castle back in early July, but the band's shows suffered at the hands of UK Customs. The authorities decided not to let the singer and drummer (Brazilian passport-holders) into the country. The guitar-hailing Antonio was let in due to his Italian passport and what followed was three weeks of trying to figure out how to outsmart the authorities to get the band into the UK and play – a rock ’n’ roll endeavour if ever there was one.
Sparing you the details, let’s just say a continental adventure kicking off in Amsterdam heading to Marseilles and then back to Paris resulted in the band landing on English soil together (sans drummer who got left behind in Brazil). Three days later the band were rehearsing in London with a new drummer who fell out of the sky into their lap, and on Wednesday night, The Fucking Prostitutes were shaking tail feathers and walls at Notting Hill's legendary basement venue.
It took a few songs for the pretentious beer-swilling masses to migrate to the floor for a band they'd never heard of, but by the third song – the ravishing "Summer in Spain" – the trainer-clad feet were lined up on the floor, tapping to melodies their hips wanted desperately to shake to. The Fucking Prostitutes effortlessly melded classic '70s rock melodies with latin-infused indie choruses, all the while displaying an advanced degree of skill and form – from the Santana-esque guitarist, to the Iggy Pop-like antics of frontman Jo Cury. Other songs played included "Love" (half the floor was dancing by then) and "Freedom," which triggered the dance floor to release musically content smiles.
The as-yet unsigned Fucking Prostitutes ended their set to roaring approval. At this point the guitarist Antonio Frugiuele nonchalantly went up to the mic, smiled and said, "We're The Fucking Prostitutes. We're from Brasil."
Having been witness to a show by The Fucking Prostitutes, I can honestly say, who cares if CSS is tired of being sexy.
..:::| COMMUNITY BAND |:::..
