June 6 2014 – Floyd Factor once again invaded The Rockpile in Toronto for a night of Pink Floyd goodness. We once again present a Floyd Factor Review (we have reviewed the band multiple times in the past).
“Breathe, breathe in the air. Don’t be afraid to care.”
From the first line of the first song, I was elbow deep in nostalgia. The band kicked off the set with a full rendition of Dark Side of the Moon, front to back and note for note. The attention to detail was astonishing which pulled my eyes towards Andre Fillppetti and Robert Sparrow’s guitar finger-work finessing like a moth to a flame. A captivated crowd then turned dumbfounded when Chloe Watkinson (daughter of Max Webster’s Terry Watkinson on tenor sax) let out the first few notes for ‘The Great Gig in the Sky.’ Watkinson’s range was incredible and with a wide eyed look to my concert going buddy, we both understood that we were in the presence of a truly talented group of singers.
The vocals from the rest of the band throughout the evening were perfect and would fool a true Floyd fan for Gilmour, Wright and Waters if their eyes were closed. Specifically, the menacing Chris Hume on bass passed supremely for Gilmour and ring leader Filippetti doubling as Waters. Nice harmonies from second guitarist Sparrow coloured the Floyd range with his Richard Wright-ness.
Keyboardist Alan Zemaitis then took us through ‘Shine On’ soundscapes with what seemed to me like a very well learned knowledge of Wright’s tones and equipment. He provided his lush layers throughout the night, supporting riffs and head nodding with the precision drumming of Frank Peluso.
The band took us through the usual popular numbers but my favourites are always the deep album cuts. They surprised the audience with The Final Cut’s ‘Not Now John’ and a spot on rendition of ‘Have A Cigar’ as an encore. What a solo! Andre, I want your pedal board.
Verdict: 5 out of 5 – Floyd Factor is, in my opinion, the best up and coming Pink Floyd tribute band out there and I highly suggest rolling up your favourite type of cigarette and grabbing a ticket the next time they play. I think the most important part of performing is having fun with what you are doing and reciprocating that to the audience. With FF, you could see the smiles, winks, laughs, and smirks of passion as they painted pictures with sound and connected to the crowd’s third eyes.
Floyd Factor review, done for now, but here are some photos of the night.
