Extreme Offer Far More Than Words At O2 Forum Kentish Town

by | Dec 23, 2023

Extreme have not had a quiet 2023. In June they released Six, their first studio album in 15 years. And, since August, they’ve played 50-something shows on a world tour that’s already taken them as far afield as Japan and Australia. So, at their final gig of the year, the band have every right to be tired. They’re not. At all. 

If anything, the men on stage at O2 Forum Kentish Town are even more into it than usual, fully embracing Nuno Bettencourt‘s description of tonight as the end of tour party. At the end of the night all four members even come out to interact with the crowd some more; while the garrulous guitarist and the tireless singer Gary Cherone come down to the barrier for fist bumps and high fives, Pat Badger throws handfuls of his bass guitar picks into the crowd and Kevin Figueiredo hands out set lists and his drum sticks.

Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum

Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum (Catherine Beltramini Photography)
Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum (Catherine Beltramini Photography)

This is even after a two-hour, curfew-busting show that, despite a few self-deprecating Bettencourt comments about their age, absolutely overflows with energy and engagement. Cherone runs, jumps, crouches, kneels, points, gestures, waves around his microphone stand like a conductor’s baton, climbs up onto a speaker stack, and at one point even slaps himself in the face, all the while belting out demanding, voice-busting songs like Decadence Dance and #Rebel or tongue-twisters Play With Me and Cupid’s Dead.

Bettencourt perhaps doesn’t spend as much time in a yoga studio as the seemingly elasticated singer, but doesn’t show any signs of the serious knee injury he suffered earlier this year as he bounds across the stage, pulls off guitar hero poses (some involving his middle finger), sings, and plays one inconceivable solo after another. (Even when watched in close-up through one of the many phone screens in the crowd, what his fingers do during the instrumental Flight Of The Wounded Bumblebee is inexplicable.)  

Badger’s less flashy but no less integral to the sound or performance — from the groove of It (‘s A Monster) and signature solo on Get The Funk Out to the harmony vocals that (with Bettencourt’s) lift epics like Rest In Peace, Song For Love, and Am I Ever Gonna Change. And while Figueiredo is less visible, the drummer’s certainly no wallflower. New all-out rockers like Thicker Than Blood and Banshee are the epitome of hard-hitting. Cupid’s Dead would be DOA without him. And the stripped back mini-set of Other Side Of The Rainbow and Hole Hearted allows for subtlety on a smaller kit at the front of the stage, while also bringing him closer to the rest of the band’s antics.

Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum

Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum (Catherine Beltramini Photography)
Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum (Catherine Beltramini Photography)

Despite the musical complexity and physical demands of these songs, the members of Extreme are clearly feeling playful. Whether it’s Cherone sharing his microphone with Bettencourt and/or Badger, the bassist reaching over to adjust the guitarist’s necklace or play his 4N Washburn, the joyous  snippets of We Will Rock You and Fat Bottomed Girls, Bettencourt joking how he’s asked Vernon Reed of thrilling support band Living Colour not to upstage him, or the singer being punched in the chest while holding the long note at the end of Take Us Alive, their sense of fun is infectious. Just look at the two 50-something men in the audience, clearly friends for decades, giddily reliving their teenage years as they play Bill & Ted-style air guitar every single time Bettencourt unleashes a solo. Or the two actual teenagers, headbanging and singing along as loudly to 1989’s Play With Me as this year’s Rise — while simultaneously posting clips to social media.

Unsurprisingly the strongest moment of connection between audience and band comes during More Than Words. Introduced by Bettencourt with a throwaway “This one’s all you”, it’s performed unplugged a la Mercury and May‘s Love Of My Life and turns into a mass singalong so loud and uplifting that, even after all these years, the singer and guitarist can’t hide their delight. Look around the sold out O2 Forum Kentish Town and it’s clear 2300 other people feel exactly the same.

  • Living Colour @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Living Colour @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Living Colour @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Living Colour @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum
  • Extreme @ Kentish Town Forum

Live review of Extreme live at O2 Forum Kentish Town on 19th December 2023 by Nils van der Linden. Photos by Catherine Beltramini Photography.

Sophie Lloyd @ Download Festival XXII - Saturday (Simon Reed)

Saturday In Photos At Download Festival XXII

As Download XXII roared into its second full day, Saturday continued the weekend's adrenaline-fuelled ride with...
Charli xcx @ Lido Festival 2025 (Henry Redcliffe)

Charli xcx’s ‘PARTYGIRL’ Rules The Night At LIDO Festival 2025 — A Euphoric Takeover In East London

East London was ablaze with brat energy on Saturday night as Charli xcx delivered a genre-defying, euphoric headline...
Green Day @ Download Festival XXII - Friday (Simon Reed)

Friday In Photos At Download Festival XXII

The sun rose over Donington Park as Download XXII launched into its first full day of music on Friday, setting the...
Roger Daltrey with The Who - Teenage Cancer Trust @ Royal Albert Hall (Kalpesh Patel)

Roger Daltrey Awarded Knighthood for Services To Music And Charity

Roger Daltrey, legendary frontman of The Who and lifelong champion of young people facing cancer, has officially been awarded a Knighthood in the King’s Birthday Honours list for 2025. The honour recognises not only his groundbreaking contributions to British music, but also his tireless work with Teenage Cancer Trust, the charity he has helped elevate to national prominence over the past three decades.

Sophie Grey @ Heilbronn (Kevin Ford)

Sophie Grey Brings ‘Retro Electro’ To The Big Stage With Sting Collab And New Music Video

Armed with a keytar, a singular sonic aesthetic, and an unapologetic love for retro-electro vibes, Sophie Grey is carving her place on the global stage — one synth-heavy track at a time. This summer, the rising artist has not only opened arena shows across Europe but has also shared the stage with none other than Sting, adding her signature flair to performances of The Police classic Spirits In The Material World on his 3.0 tour.

Fiaa Hamilton (Adam Brazier)

Fiaa Hamilton Celebrates Birthday With Empowering New Single ‘Nothing Is Perfect’

Rising pop powerhouse Fiaa Hamilton continues her skyward trajectory with the release of her bold and emotionally resonant new single Nothing Is Perfect, arriving just in time to mark her birthday. The track sees Fiaa cement her growing status as one of 2025’s most compelling new voices in pop, following a breakout year that’s included a New Faces For 2025 nod from The Sun and a performance at TikTok’s Live Fest alongside Jason Derulo and Zara Larsson at London’s iconic Roundhouse.

The Sons Of Guns (Cléa Margaret)

The Sons Of Guns Bring Modern Sunshine To ’70s Folk-Rock With Radiant Debut EP ‘You Shine The Sun’

Emerging from the sun-drenched hills of Nice with roots stretching back to Doncaster and even Bombay, genre-blurring...
Kane Brown (Dennis Leupold)

Kane Brown Drops Summer Anthem ‘2 Pair’ & Gears Up for International Tour

Genre-blending country trailblazer Kane Brown is officially soundtracking your summer with his brand-new single 2...

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This

Share Thing