CHECK OUT THE PHOTO GALLERY FROM THE SHOW HERE.
The first thing that must be said is that Pnau definitely know how to put on a killer show. I’m not sure that anyone attending realised that they were in for a wild ride of (mostly) electrifying visuals, dancing fruit and giant balloons falling from the sky. The duo, touring in the wake of the success of their third self-titled album, attracted an extremely eclectic audience to the UC Refectory.
The crowd comprised mostly of young groovy punters who were clearly attracted to Pnau’s more recent pop anthems but also attracted the older more experienced attendees, possibly with Pnau from their experimental beginnings.
Supporting Pnau was the very cool Van She, who I dare say will be headlining their own acts in no time. These guys controlled the stage and their sound. The electro rock emanating from the stage was catchy and refined. The highlight of their set was definitely hearing their new single Cat and the Eye, which is set to permeate the airwaves, and also a personal (slightly daggy) favourite Kelly.
Breakbot played in the interim, however I’m lucky I noticed. Playing rough deep electro, his set became unpleasantly repetitive and also slightly boring. I’m sorry, but at he could have at least stood behind some decks and pretended instead of looking like a statue behind his laptop. For all we know, he could have pressed play at the beginning of the set and proceeded to check Facebook for its duration. If any good came out of it was to heighten the anticipation precluding the arrival of the headliners.
And finally it came – blasting onto the stage with Wild Strawberries (literally). Surrounded by two pieces of dancing fruit and a back screen displaying the lyrics to the song, Pnau began their set on a high note, which was clearly well received. From then on the tone and energy of the set was well maintained. At any stage where the audience may have begun to lose interest, something else captivating would occur. As mentioned earlier, multi-coloured giant balloons fell from the sky at one point and a female vocalist made a surprise appearance.
However, it could also have been construed that the duo were playing another game – that game of subconscious distraction. With most people concentrating on popping or smashing balloons or perhaps reading the lyrics to most songs verbatim off the big screen, one could definitely be forgiven for not realising the suffocating nature of the set. I couldn’t look away from the screen when the lyrics were flashing up. It was almost felt like a weird form of karaoke. Much preferred were the other visuals, like the random coloured squares flashing to and fro. The same underlying beat didn’t seem to stop the whole time they were playing, and songs were pumped out one at a time in a slightly regimented fashion.
But let’s not get too down on them. Definitely worth praise was the art of meshing some of their old stuff in with the new, hopefully enticing some of the new listeners into researching their new favourite band. And just to contradict myself, the gimmicks were cool. The atmosphere was one of extreme enthusiasm and anticipation, which was propelled by Pnau’s energy. Finishing with an encore of the opening track on their new album With You Forever was slightly cheesy, but in tune with the rest of the show.
All-in-all, it was a well-rounded gig. Will I go and see them again? Possibly, but probably not. But I know I don’t speak for everyone when I say that. Leaving the venue I could see many starry-eyed faces, the majority of which look both content and eager for more.
