Local artist Geoffrey O’Connor (Sly Hats, Crayon Fields) has one of the more awkward stage presence’s I’ve seen in a long time. He posses little charisma and between songs there was a lot of uncomfortable rambling, which one didn’t expect from a performer whose been around for as long as O’Connor has.
The music itself was a bad imitation of Roxy Music and Boy George, that wouldn’t have been out of place as the soundtrack to a terribly clichéd eighties teen movie set at a high school dance.
Between the sugary sweet synth, the blasé lyrics and the band’s lifeless performance, the set seemed like a pointless exercise in eighties nostalgia, with no great song writing craft to elevate the tunes from being highly derivative pop ballads to something worth talking about.
Three piece My Disco blew the crowd away with a blistering performance, cementing their reputation as one of the best experimental post-rock groups in the country.
Benjamin Andrews, Liam Andrews and Rohan Rebeiro create luscious soundscapes from a world of miscellaneous clamour and their live show is a fiercely intense affair, with the band barely stopping to take a breath as they doled out track after track of droning noise rock.
My Disco played a tight set, featuring tracks from 2010’s critically acclaimed LP Little Joy. The sounds brood and swirl until they collapse in a climactic finish that was thrilling to witness as the band lost themselves in the music, playing in a trance like state, thrashing and convulsing along to the noise. Highlights of which were riveting performance’s of “Turn”, “Closer” and “A Turreted Berg”.
At the end of the show Liam Andrews paused to thank the audience for coming, before the band walked offstage to the sound of feedback and distortion, leaving the crowd sweaty, exhausted and begging for more after an exhilarating 45 minute set that was flawlessly executed and intensely exciting to watch.
My Disco dominate the art-rock scene in Melbourne with their electrifying live shows and jarring, angular tunes. Their last home town show before heading off on a North American tour was a blissfully wondrous affair, and it’ll be interesting to see the new sounds they come up with when they return home later in the year.
Review Score: 7/10
