Tonight’s gig was moved from the Metro Theatre to the more eclectic surroundings of the Oxford Arts Factory. The support band for Hockey came in the way of four piece Sydney band the Cassette Kids.

From the outset the Cassette Kids sported a touch of professionalism with their catchy dance infected indie-pop. The bass lines were sturdy foot tappers and the guitarist filled out the sound more than adequately with synth-esque licks that went hand in hand with the vocals from Katrina, whom incidentally is a rather stunning and charismatic frontwoman.

The crowd at the OAF responded well to the four piece and rightly so, it’s the very reason the likes of Lily Allen and Calvin Harris have had them on the same bill recently. With more exposure and a debut album expected in March these guys are sure to do well.

With a support band like the Cassette Kids, the US band Hockey must be pretty confident of their abilities. Which they seem to be, but is it justified?

There is no doubt that this bunch have decamped from Oregon to Australian soil due to their aforementioned abilities. Guitarist Brian White, gives 110% with some sweet soul rhythms and some sweeter solos. And bassist, Jeremy Reynolds keeps the ship together with his funky bass riffs. Drummer Anthony Stassi not only sports a superb moustache, but compliments and ties the former two together with some nifty tub work. The band also utilize keyboard player Ryan Dolliver for live performances, who performs his duty in a somewhat subtle but useful manner.

Hockey have been compared elsewhere to the likes of LCD Soundsystem and The Strokes, but in all honesty I am not sure why. Yes, the band is tight and play some pretty sweet electro dance indie. And yes, they have played all the right festivals in the last 12 months, and yes they probably do have some record selling power.

If Hockey had a charismatic frontwoman such Kristina from Cassette Kids, or maybe a frontman with a bit more attitude such as Julian Casablancas to compliment the excellent band then I feel they would be making more of an impact. It’s not that Benjamin Gruber is a bad singer or the songs are poor, far from it. Most of the songs are perfectly fine; it’s just that Gruber seems to turn the band into Maroon 5 tribute act.

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