Maximo Park, Denim Owl @Billboard, Melbourne(11/11/2009)

Thu 12th Nov, 2009 in Gig Reviews

Returning for a third visit in as many years, Maximo Park returned to Billboard to showcase material off their latest release, Quicken the Heart, and help the packed crowd forget about the week’s heatwave. They delivered a set list crammed with a healthy mix of their three albums and provided a show with unabashed, non-stop energy – more than enough to prove, yet again, what a brilliant live act they are.

Denim Owl wasn’t really the kind of act you’d expect for this time and place; warming the stage for the uber-energetic Maximo Park, at Billboard nightclub no less – a venue more well known for its skank (not the reggae kind) and sweaty metro-dance than for hosting subtle indie acts such as this. Subtle they were, playing a short set (15 minutes shorter than allotted to them) with amicable yet equally awkward banter between them amongst nicely understated pop tunes.

Denim Owl consists of Aleks and the Ramps members Denim and Brain Cobra, and they share a similar kitten-friendly-pop sound with that other act, albeit gentler. The wispy vocals of Denim on tracks like Knitted Soup were certainly more suited to less ritzy band rooms, but despite being overpowered by the collective voice of the crowd, the duo still seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Members from Maximo Park entered the stage in somewhat of a similar fashion – drummer Tom English, bassist Archis Tiku and guitarist Duncan Lloyd together forming as casual an indie trio as ever, but quickly joined by the much more enthusiastic keyboardist, Lukas Wooller. Together they began the all-too-recognisable opening chords of Wraithlike, offering an entrance for front man, Paul Smith, who came running, obviously undeterred by the heat in his full 70s inspired powder blue suit. From the moment he ran on stage, the energy in the packed room exploded – the woes of sweaty neighbours forgotten.

Quicken the Heart received plenty of praising reviews around the traps, and if the introductory single was anything to go by, the new songs were to be as exciting on the set list as older favourites. And that they were. Flicking back and forth between new and old in the early moments of the set, Maximo Park delivered freshly addictive numbers like, The Penultimate Clinch and The Kids Are Sick Again, which each received equally loud sing alongs amongst tracks like the infectious Graffiti.

As fun as the songs were, Smith couldn’t help but make himself the standout of the performance, incessantly dancing to every song on the list. Sometimes a front man without an instrument can fail, but in the case of this band, Smith’s lack of guitar means a lack of any restriction, which he uses to his full advantage. Darting from one side of stage to the other, taking a dominant stance with mic-stand raised high, the occasional mid-air splits and just simply dancing up a storm for the enjoyment of it made Smith a visual smorgasbord. Wooller wasn’t shy of attention grabbing himself, stretching his keyboard low to the ground at times and often opting for a bit of air-instrumentation.

A mid-set appearance of Apply Some Pressure – one of the songs that would have introduced many in the room to their music – was a sheer delight, causing many in the room to lose their inhibitions and dance away with Smith. Going Missing (the song Smith ably noted sounds nothing like AC/DC) and Limassol were similarly interactive, though there were moments when it was all left to Smith, such as his rather suggestive moves in new track, Let’s Get Clinical.

Between the more buoyant tracks, Maximo Park chose to show a bit of their softer side. The mostly spoken-word Acrobat appeared in its first Australian appearance and offered the only song in which Smith really stood still. Despite claiming most of their songs are “fundamentally romantic,” you couldn’t help but notice the romantic sector of the set list, with latest single Questing, Not Coasting and the lovable Books From Boxes appearing back to back.

“We’re in remarkably high spirits,” commented Smith at one point, and by the time the set ended with Girls Who Play Guitars, it was obvious the crowd were equally as happy. Chants for the encore ensued and, not surprisingly, the five Englishmen reappeared. What was interesting, however, was that they began their encore with a b-side, That Beating Heart, a much more subdued number that Smith declared would be played for the first and last time for this Melbourne crowd. The obvious show-closer, then, was Our Velocity, complete with Lloyd upping his energy on guitar to Smith and Wooller’s level, which again raised the energy (and the mercury) in the room for a sweaty end.

Maximo Park’s live show equals serious fun and it’s surprising that they haven’t graduated to bigger venues here in Australia. Of course, no one at Billboard was complaining about that, given they had an arena-capable show performed to them in a little Melbourne club – an exhilarating performance that was easily up there with 2009’s best.

CHECK OUT THE PHOTOS FROM THE GIG HERE