Ah, The Ting Tings. The Ting Tings at the Prince Bandroom. Before I get into it, I’d like to take some time to review, oddly enough, the end of the evening: it was hot. That much was obvious. I had just left the bandroom, and stepped outside, and It was hot, it was muggy, and – wait, 11:10pm? Okay. Let’s rewind.

The night began at 8:30pm, and supporting the English pop duo were Dash And Will, flying the home-town flag. They announced they were here to ‘warm us up’ for the Ting Tings (an amusing choice of words given the 40 degree day that preceded their set) and launched into their single Pick Me Up, lifted from debut album Up In Something. And honestly, that’s about all I can say about Dash And Will. Except that I noticed either Dash or Will – it hardly seems relevant which – sported a singlet, reading, simply, ‘The problem is…’. Let this innocuous slogan be the motif not only of Dash And Will, but of the entire night.

The problems with Dash And Will are numerous, but thankfully, simple. Regrettably, their brand of music is nothing new, and really, it was a bad night to be them: less than a month ago, Canadian pop-queens Tegan And Sara had headlined The Palace in front of an unimaginably adoring sell-out crowd. And in less than a month’s time, home-grown commercial radio favourites The Veronicas will be pop-rocking The Palais. And there in lies the problem: if by some miracle you enjoy their music, I alone can already refer you to at least two acts who do Dash And Will better than Dash And Will. And that’s bad. But what’s worse for the Melburnian duo, is that they’re whole schtick is basically offensively inoffensive. Its not particularly interesting and it all feels rather uninspired. I really want them to succeed, as they seem talented and genuinely charming, but as long as they’re comfortable making risk-free radio rock, they’ll be lost on me, and I suspect lost on others also.

10:20pm, and The Ting Tings took to the stage. My first observation was that they had appeared twenty minutes later than scheduled. Probably just as well, then, that they wasted no time at all and opened with crowd favourite We Walk, from their ever-popular debut album We Started Nothing. And then came Great DJ, with its marching, thumping basslines. And then, all of a sudden, each song began to sound inseparable from the last. The problem is…this: why is it that every song The Ting Tings have seems to insist on being a single? Why is it all so anthemic? I couldn’t help it; the whole thing became more and more frustrating with each track. There’s nothing particularly exciting to report back about here. I’d like to say that the crowd sing along in Traffic Light was a highlight, but then everything they have has the capacity to be a sing along due to its shameful – and, more often than not, boring – simplicity. And really, what would you be singing anyway? No, lyrics aren’t exactly The Ting Tings’ expertise, which is perhaps why it fell apart for me once I realised the monotony of the music.

Additionally, it was far from visually stimulating – there’s only so much of a show you can put on with two particularly limited musicians on stage, and Katie (aka Mary, Jo, Lisa) rocking out next to drummer Jules sure gets old quickly (especially when its the only avenue you’re ever willing to take towards creating stage presence). Despite all this, the crowd was lapping it up. I can honestly say I didn’t get it, because meanwhile, second single Shut Up And Let Me Go became more of a shared sentiment for me than anything else. Remarkably, however, my wish was granted, as the pair left the stage – at 10:50pm. Well, alright. An extended encore maybe? Two songs later, including mega-hit That’s Not My Name, and it was over. Out the door at 11:10pm. And I didn’t even leave early.

So there you have it. A fifty-minute set. Honestly, I’m still bewildered about the whole experience. Is there something I’m missing? Do I just not get pop music anymore? I don’t know what it is. I just can’t place it. Its familiar, its repetitive, its dancy – its a lot of things that I’m sure I’m supposed to embrace. However,its also tedious, tiresome and uninteresting. Still, the Prince Bandroom crowd sure were hungry for each and every last bit of it. So who are you going to trust?