Van She lead singer Nick Routledge sure does like to climb! The stage is obviously not impressive enough for this mischief maker; he was jumping up on the speakers and bass drum at any chance he got.
However, this was quite the opposite for support band Lost Valentino’s wiry front man Nik, who after jumping off stage mid-song proceeded to finish singing I got a little something, for a good minute or two whilst lying on the ground. This was probably an indication of the band’s disappointment in the dreadfully dull crowd, who stayed two meters back from the stage for the whole set, and refused to put on their dancing shoes and let loose. This was completely undeserved – the Lost Valentino’s set was ever so amazing! This subversive Sydney band has fashioned their own eccentric kick-ass sound, creating a fusion of psychedelic and indie elements with a love of ‘torching’ the dance floor. Unlike his rather timid audience, Nik sure can dance!
As soon as Van She took over the stage, the crowd was miraculously revamped. Party animals replaced the dreary, and massed crowd was ready to rumble! Van She got the crowd going with progressive rock track Memory Man, which was as an ideal energising opener. They followed with The Sea and Cat & the Eye, which confirmed this bands pushy versatileness works well with new ears. It was, however, a shame how much the bass overpowered Nick’s melodious voice and his guitar.
The standout crowd pleasers were undeniably Strangers, Changes, and the old favourite Sex City. Unmistakably, it was Kelly that really got the crowd moving. The near-perfect mix of both natural and synthesized sounds was confidently impressive. Unfortunately, I found it was a shame Van She did not blend any of their songs together, instead pausing to allow the gang to put palm to palm at the end of each song. Bassist and male-model-wannabe Matt Van Schie seemed to enjoy the breaks; several times I caught him at the back of the stage swigging out of a champagne bottle.
And just as we all thought the show was over, Van She left the stage only to return with matching ‘V’ jackets they claim to have brought in America. They played an instrumental mixture of adventurous rock-pop, leaving the kids to have a final d-floor stomp. It was at this moment I looked around and noticed the ridiculous amounts of glass and split drinks littered over the floor – proof of how much the untamed party animals enjoyed the set.
Van She’s sound is relatively different to a lot of the club-centric stuff stemming from Australia. A whole new audience is set to discover their unique intensity. Hopefully Nick will keep on climbing and we’ll see a lot more from this radical band.
