Neon Indian, Kyu @ Toff inTown, Melbourne (03/01/2010)

Sat 8th Jan, 2011 in Gig Reviews

It’s been a year since Neon Indian last swooned to our sunny shores. Though this year hasn’t been all too hot, it’s sure the best time of year to hear again the woozy sounds of Mr. Alan Palomo.
 
Kyu make a sound quite different, still maintaining a sense of swoon but in a very removed way. Where Neon Indian is synthetic and fantastic, Kyu are stunningly natural and tribal. They’ve only a small number of shows in this state under their belt, having played the early hours of Meredith Music Festival, but the buzz is already swarming. Put it down to the commanding presence of their sound, which went no small way towards killing the crowd that was early enough to catch them tonight. If you haven’t seen them yet, they’re a duo of fierce voices either side of two glockenspiels and a reverbed floor tom. The rest of their sound fills out with samplers and two synths, the former being relied on respectably little for a two-piece. Instead they create textures with powerful voice, body percussion, and a unified slamming of the tom. Magical and beautiful and not like any other Australian band – if you haven’t seen them, do.

The Rooftop shows have clearly been waylaid in their short tenure; this was to be another one, up on the very top open level of the Curtin house, but at kind of late notice it was shifted down to the Toff. Nobody could complain about that great venue, but it’s a shame Rooftop couldn’t keep going – the ambition for a unique live experience was obviously there, just not levelled by practicality.

It was a chilly night anyway (like the rest of this forsaken summer) so the padded walls and red warmth of the Toff were a great surrounds, as Neon Indian at last made it to the stage. Local Joke propelled Palomo and team to an excellent, energetic beginning. Live he takes on a threepiece of guitar, drums, and a synth player, to find the rest of the sound and that vibe that feels so wonderful on record. It was replicated really well, with the help of a considerable backing track. Palomo was left to sing, dance & play theremin, all of which he did really well – especially the dancing! Most appreciated them sultry looks that came from his eyes as he jiggied.

He was charismatic in speaking too, when he gave himself the chance. Remarkably, the band only paused twice in the whole set, chugging through songs or soundscapes constantly. A weird upshot of this was that the crowd couldn’t express any appreciation that might have been fermenting, scarcely given a chance to clap above the consistent hullabaloo. This created some kind of distance, but with the brilliance of the songs and their energetic playing, a convincing frontman, and groovy-movin’ guitarist, it didn’t matter so much. I don’t know if you know, Should have taken acid with you, and Deadbeat Summer all were given a chance to remind us how great they are. They had a nostalgic sound to begin with, and with a year of age to weather them, this night, that sound really ‘took us back to the summer of 08-09’.

The set closed with an extended “VEGA jam”, the name of Palomo’s side project and the moniker he takes on when playing with that particular guitarist and drummer. It was much like the rest of the set: danceable and awesome with a smallish level of personal connection. Concluding with a promise: a new album by “next Fall”, which could mean anything. Let’s see: Fall = Autumn in America = Spring in Australia = another summer with Neon Indian.

Check out photos from the gig here