The other night I met a two amazing people at The Forum. Derek E. Miller and Alexis Krauss. They called themselves Sleigh Bells. They had sex with my ears. Then they left, they didn’t leave their number and they finished way too quickly, leaving us with “Crown on the Ground”. I believe that was the orgasm.
I almost want to leave the review at this… but I digress. Moving back in time, I was greeted at the Forum by one of my favourite Melbourne bands Rat Vs Possum. This is a band who haven’t changed all that much over the last year or so – they’ve found a formula and they’ve stuck with it. They don’t really have that “it” song just yet, but what they do leave you with is a fucking great experience. With pretty much every performer at the front of the stage, there’s a great energy that comes out of that. And when it culminates in all the members drumming the shit out of whatever they have in front of them – there is certainly something to be said for that, too. This band deserves your attention.
Purple Sneakers DJs were next. As usual, a bunch of sound choices (“Home” by Edward Sharpe being a highlight), with a couple of average ones, all mixed together in expert fashion. It was a bit more “filler” than the high energy sets I’ve experienced in the past, but then again, they were essentially playing between bands. And of course, the band to follow were none other than those sexual deviants that I mentioned before – Sleigh Bells.
Yes, with only one album to their credit, even though they played through it essentially in its entirety, and a bonus track to boot, they were always going to be leaving us too soon. But their LOUD, high energy set left no one disappointed. Opening with “”Tell Em”, these guys killed it live. Of course, it’s all credited to Alexis, who jumps around like there’s no tomorrow – and even throws in a crowd surf or two. Derek, meanwhile, plays the too cool for school rocker – jamming on his guitar, and playing with the knobs on the WALL OF AMPS behind him. What more do you need?
I hope we don’t have long to wait before new material, because I was left aching for more. I’d delve into the sexual analogy further, but I think you get the point…
