If there was anything to take away from The Internet’s Friday night show, it was that Sydney loves The Internet and it’s reciprocal; and it isn’t just because Syd’s name is in the city’s name. The reception was nothing short of euphoric when Syd took the stage to join her bandmates. Every hand across the ground floor was raised in unison, a feat of crowd participation that was repeatedly topped over the course of an extensive set that moved through different projects, genres and moods; with the seamlessness of an expert curator’s ear.
The exciting thing about the current tour has been its concentration on allowing each member a chance to take the spotlight and perform songs from their solo projects. A move that has injected wide variety into the set. Steve Lacey took the spotlight first to melt hearts with his Motown inspired tunes. Dressed in red overalls, his guitar highly slung and equipped with a Britney microphone he has genuine star power and swagger, exuding charisma while working the front of the audience.
Matt Martians brought the loose-limbed percussive swing of big band music to the set with “Dent Jusay” and “Diamond in da Ruff”. His ability to infuse his modern production with old-school musicality making the songs so interesting. The basis is in Atlanta hip-hop, but it is infused with the same free-form jazz and funk experimentation that makes The Internet such an intriguing group.
The forays into solo projects were broken up with smatterings of tracks from Ego Death, providing return entry points for fans who may not have kept up to date with all the different projects. It worked to maintain a narrative across the set and thread all the different projects together. Patrick Paige II’s solo, soul sample anchored; rap tune transitioned cleanly into the forward-thinking pop of “Just Sayin/ I Tried”. Who’s ex-shaming chorus of “You fucked up” was chanted back with glee.
Earlier in the week on Triple J, Syd admitted that she still gets nervous singing. Her songs are infused with so many personal anecdotes of exes and young relationships that it isn’t surprising she still gets nerves before performing. She has clearly found a way to channel that energy into something positive, coming off cool and calm, with an expert talent at driving crowd participation, being able to repeatedly step away from the microphone and let the audience carry the song.
Her solo material is far more insular than the rest of her bandmates and it was exciting to see that the group had found a way to translate her bedroom productions into a full live band setting. It was interesting that she chose to hem towards some of the quieter moments from the record, with Body and Insecurities chosen over more upbeat tracks like “All About Me”. When you can only pick three tracks from an album that good there is always going to be a sense of dissatisfaction for what has been missed.
“Get Away” closed out a night that shone talent not just on the group as a collective but the individual talent of each of its members in a way that few other shows have been capable of. The sheer skill of the group as musicians unites all these different sonic pallets together and deserves every bit of love thrown their way.
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Photos by Juan Castro from January 31st 2018 show at The Forum Melbourne
The reviewer attended the show on the 9th of February 2018 at the Enmore Theatre in Sydney.
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