F*ck Buttons, The Forum

When this particular electro act formed in 2004, they decided not to pull their punches: they called themselves Fuck Buttons because they thought it sounded ‘playful and abrasive’.

They’re certainly playful: the duo use a variety of instruments, from Casiotone keyboards to children’s toys. For instance, you’ll see them use a Fisher-Price karaoke machine in a way the makers probably hadn’t intended when they play at The Forum on February 7.

From this array of gadgets, Fuck Buttons make grand, ambitious electronic music—the kind that leaves overwhelmed reviewers grasping for adequate language to describe it. Journos tend to draw on analogies to architecture: their sound has been described as an 'ear purging slab of towering, pristine noise', the Guardian went for 'an obelisk: towering, dark and heavy'.

It’s certainly loud, monolithic stuff that will not take kindly to being played on headphones. Their songs—full of fusillades of crashing drums tempered by buzzing drones and occasional blips and bloops—demand to be played live, and only over a serious sound system. Director Danny Boyle for one recognised the grandiloquent quality of their music; he got them in to play at the Olympics opening ceremony (their 2008 song Olympians was the focal point of the ceremony setlist).  

It was an unusual choice on Boyle’s part: Fuck Buttons are intense and experimental— they’re not easy on the ears. For all that, they’re hugely popular. A year after performing at the Olympics, they headlined Glastonbury. Now, they’re coming to The Forum. It’s a mid-sized venue, but Fuck Buttons’ epic soundscapes will make it feel much larger. 

The multi-talented Kevin Martin will be DJ-ing under his The Bug alias (think juddery dub and dancehall); DJs will play until 1 am.

Ticket price: £16.50