Review: Fred Again.. Brings USB002 to San Francisco
REVIEW
REVIEW
☆ BY MARCO SEVILLA ☆
Photos By Theo Batterham
10 WEEKS. 10 SONGS. 10 CITIES. - This was the premise that defined the buzz-filled tour of U.K. DJ and producer, Fred again.., to promote his latest body of work, USB002.
Fans were sent into a frenzy on Dec. 1 when Fred announced via Instagram that the ninth and second-to-last stop of the run would be in San Francisco. Among error messages and a long online ticket queue, many fans begrudgingly learned that the show sold out in mere minutes. The bunch who successfully got through checkout counted themselves among the lucky few.
The following Friday, Dec. 5, more than 12,000 fans poured into Cow Palace Arena. At the entrance, every attendee was handed a small circular sticker and instructed to place it over their phone cameras in compliance with the show’s no-camera policy. Fred and his team made the message very clear: This was a show worth staying present for.
Stepping onto the arena floor, we were enveloped by a larger-than-life art installation: a ghostly yet ethereal sheet of fabric suspended from the ceiling which spanned the entirety of the arena floor. Throughout the nearly seven-hour show, it moved dynamically with the music and was illuminated by strobes that surged through the crowd like electrical currents.
The show opened with an impressive lineup, featuring local San Francisco Bay Area artists Bad Juuju, Clearcast, and Vertigo followed by U.K. DJs Oppidan and Hamdi. Between wobbling basslines and nostalgic dance music samples, the openers drew sounds from UK garage, grime, and dubstep which kept the crowd in constant motion. Fred himself appeared onstage multiple times throughout the night to support the opening sets, further increasing the anticipation for his main DJ set.
When Fred took the stage for the show’s main performance, he acknowledged his surprise Civic Center show with collaborator and producer Skrillex in San Francisco just a year prior, citing it as one of his favorite shows he’s ever thrown and one of the reasons he chose to return to the Bay Area. He began his set with the dark tones of USB002, eventually transitioning into a more uplifting mood as he played more of his pandemic-era hits Fred became known for. The producer also premiered a new song fresh off the USB002 tracklist, “solo,” featuring London rapper Blanco.
During a year that felt like a musical renaissance for San Francisco, Fred Again..’s Cow Palace performance stood out like a landmark among a roster of iconic performances. It was a life-affirming show: communal, ambitious, minimalistic, and with music that cut into the soul. As Fred bowed out, he played an ambient track that filled the emptying arena with a feeling of softness, a stark contrast to the bass-filled intensity that overtook most of the night. The conclusion was full-circle, leaving the remaining crowd in a dream-like, wholly satisfied state.
