Kneecap and Fontaines D.C. play epic gig in Finsbury Park

In the months between being booked as support for Irish indie-rockers Fontaines D.C. they had touched off a political storm with pro-Palestinian statements at Coachella festival – followed by a retrospective terror charge over a flag allegedly displayed at the Kentish Town Forum last November.

It’s fair to say the lads from Belfast’s Catholic community were leaning into the poignancy of such a charge – and Keir Starmer’s suggestion that they should not play Glastonbury.

‘It’s been a mad few weeks’ said Belfast rapper Mo Chara (right) who stands accused of a terror charge following a gig at the Kentish Town Forum last November. (Image: GEORGINA HURDSFIELD TINY RAINDROP PHOTOGRAPHY) “It’s been a mad few weeks, it’s nice to be in London and not in court,” joked Mo Chara, who denies the charge.

He and bandmate Moglai Bap led a shout out to the “undercover cops in the audience”, before encouraging fans to shout “F**k Keir Starmer” and referencing local Islington MP “You’re just a sh*t Jeremy Corbyn”.

Later he turned serious, explaining he didn’t hate the British “just the British government,” and vowed to never stop speaking out about how “Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people”.

If all that sounds heavy it wasn’t – between the banter they delivered a riotous hour-long, 14-song set of the kind that reminds you why you bother going to gigs.

DJ Provai went crowd-surfing during the one our set. (Image: GEORGINA HURDSFIELD TINY RAINDROP PHOTOGRAPHY) Bap was sporting an Oasis shirt and there’s a swaggering humour and energy to their English and Irish language raps that reminds you of the Mancunians in their prime.

DJ Provai, in his trademark tricolour balaclava, went crowd surfing. Elsewhere they parted the sweaty masses to “open up the pit” as adoring fans chanted along to Your sniffer dogs are shite and Get Your Brits Out.

It could have been a hard act to follow but there was a lot of love in the park for Fontaines and their melodic, post-punk indie tunes – well suited to the open air festival vibe.

It took a while to build, but striding down the runway in a kilt and Sinead O’Connor T-shirt, frontman Grian Chatten soon had the 45,000 strong crowd eating out of his hand.

By turns offering folk-tinged poetic balladry and grungy guitar-laden punk and the uplift of It’s Amazing to be Young and Boys in the Better Land, they cemented their status as a great live act, with a justifiably devoted following – truly the men of the moment.

Fontaines D.C. referenced the Palestinian cause during their Finsbury Park gig. (Image: GEORGINA HURDSFIELD TINY RAINDROP PHOTOGRAPHY) With a sea of Irish T-shirts – and Palestinian flags – across the site, it was a nostalgic throwback to the days of the Fleadh in this park, and its counter-cultural energy. 

Fontaines have not been silent on the Palestinian issue either, the words ‘Israel is Committing Genocide Use Your Voice’ flashed up on the screen during the penultimate number I Love You before they closed with the epic Starburster.

As fans exited the park on a high, all you could hear was “brilliant gig” – expect to see more of Fontaines D.C. at ever bigger venues in the future.