For those who’ve ever wondered how seventeen musicians in robes like to party, The Polyphonic Spree would like to show you. And for those intrigued on how colourful Melbourne’s Forum Theatre could possibly become, they would also like to show you. On Saturday night, Melbourne was introduced to the SoCo Carnivale – a musical extravaganza for the eyes and ears that those in attendance will be talking about for a looong time.

When you come to the Forum for a gig, the first thing you’ll usually see is the band’s merchandise table. Not this time – instead the stall played host to costume handouts; as this was a carnival after all, and what’s a carnival without costumes? Technicoloured headdresses, hats, masks, shiny bling and – wait for it – slap bands, were all being adorned by every person walking into the theatre and before long the place was alive with colour and flashing red lights.

Inside, the party was already in full swing with The New Orleans Bingo Show running amuck about the stage. It’s hard to gather what this act is like without seeing them for yourself, but if words are to suffice for now, let’s try: circus gypsy jazz and funk, mixed with burlesque and clown performers, and all kinds of whacky and diverse instrumentation and visuals. Glitz, glamour and good times made up their set, as the act’s pair of clowns fooled about before a bevy of projected images.

TNOBS were a pack of musical allsorts, too. Everything from polka to jazz to New Orleans soul was represented over the course of 45 minutes. Their instrument cache included everything you can poke a clown’s walking stick at – saxophone, ukulele, musical saw, accordion, theremin and even pots and pans, the list just goes on. And then there was the vocals of Clint Maegen, with a gritty, yet soulful voice perfect for the group’s New Orleans style. A gloriously entertaining troupe to begin the night and a must see on future musical excursions.

It was then time for the carnival’s main event, and behind a white sheet, the silhouettes of musicians appeared and began to play. It took a while for much to happen other than the subtle instrumentation of the intro, but The Polyphonic Spree thrive on peaks in their performance that work best off the back of such lengthy build up. When the curtain did eventually drop, they made noise – lots of it. They shot confetti, and everyone in the Forum rejoiced.

What followed from there was a set well over two hours in length, complete with all The Polyphonic Spree favourites, a fantastic selection of covers and a few other surprises for those in attendance. The whole show was a massive love-in as well, with band members hugging each other whilst performing and Tim DeLaughter constantly thanking his lucky stars that he was playing at the Forum – “My God, what a beautiful place!”

The Polyphonic Spree’s three albums were represented well in the set list. Early inspirational tracks like Hold Me Now and Light & Day had voices joining the chorus, there were “la la las” all round on Everything Starts At The Seam and smiles during It’s The Sun (“And it makes you smile,” one of the evening’s defining lyrics).

Everyone in the band had their moment in the spotlight, too. For instance, there was a cello rock-out on Running Away, awesome brass representation on the Rolling Stones cover, She’s a Rainbow, some lovely sole choir work to begin When the Fool Becomes the King and a lengthy keyboard solo to end it (which saw the other 16 members lying down on stage to have a rest)

The set’s covers were standouts, as The Polyphonic Spree so easily make the songs their own. Live and Let Die was great, as was Thunderclap Newman’s Something in the Air (“Do you realise the power of that song? I wish I wrote that fucker,” cried DeLaughter) and Nirvana’s Lithium. But the best of all was saved until last – with the entire theatre joining in on Sweet Caroline, a song that demands a few “Ba Ba Bas”.

And how does a band make their joyous music even happier? With balloons, of course; lots of them, raining down for the crowd to play with, along with plenty of confetti being shot from the stage. DeLaughter went crazy running around at the set’s end, the feathered crowd rejoiced, and The Polyphonic Spree left everyone in the Forum grinning their way out onto Flinders Street and into the night.