Angelinos stood in line early to catch “Kill Mother F*ck1n Depeche Mode” aka KMFDM. At least that’s how I remember hearing KMFDM back in my youth. Is that really what KMFDM stands for? Maybe…Maybe not. Who really knows. Only true and die-hard fans and the band will know since according to Wikipedia:
KMFDM stands for “Kein Mehrheit Für Die Mitleid, loosely translated by the band as “no pity for the majority”. But whatever it really means, it doesn’t really matter because the only thing that matters is the music that KMFDM brought back to the streets of Los Angeles, their beautiful sounds of hard industrial music
Written by Don Marcelo
Pulsating beats of drums, Electric guitar slashing through the lights and fog, and Euphoric trance-like dark sounds of electronic goth/rock/industrial music by KMFDM made the fans dance and sing and rip the floors off at The Belasco theater on this night.
Their music is so intense and heavy, not in the sense of hostile music, but rather has this sweet intoxicating sounds of dark heavy fury and hard music that makes a person sway their body back and forth and dance like a zombie but at the same time makes someone bang his/her head to harsh thrashing guitar riffs and beats of the drums. This night brought back a ton of memories for me when I was in my youth listening to a lot of industrial-death rock/industrial-goth rock bands. Truly a beautiful night to remember and to capture moments of a band who has stood the test of time since 1984.
As a photographer, this is my first time shooting in the pit at The Belasco and I hope it won’t be the last (I have shot here as a fan with my point and shoot in the past, October of 2022 to be exact, for my favorite JROCK band). I love the challenge of capturing the moments of artists with difficult lighting due to backlighting, fog, special effects and little to non-existent white lights on the artists’ faces. This night is like this as usual. Very dark. Lots of fog. Extremely hard and challenging. But like I said, as a pro-photographer, I welcome the challenge. Hope you enjoy some of the moments I captured on this night.
On a final note, since I’m a photographer and a not a writer, I’m writing this review with pure honesty. If you love industrial/electronic goth rock/death rock/experimental music, you will love KMFDM. The music isn’t for everyone but that’s okay. I love this music. But then again I love all types of music. But I don’t love every band that is out there. I can honestly say that I enjoyed and love KMFDM’s music and performance and their fans and I became a fan on this night since this is the first time for me seeing and hearing KMFDM and most likely won’t be the last (I’m already listening and watching YouTube to catch up on what I missed when I was in my youth.)
There is one more show left on March 28th in Seattle, Washington. It is Sold Out as most of their shows.
KMFDM links
Photo Gallery of the performances by © Don Marcelo Photography 2024
