Single Twin, Underlapper, Fromthe South @ The StreetTheatre, Canberra (2/8/11)

Fri 5th Aug, 2011 in Gig Reviews

The Street Theatre in Canberra was host to the musical equivalent of a romantic dinner for two on Tuesday night. Tables covered in red linen table cloths and the room lit with little more than candles, the space swooned with musical intimacy.

Kicking off the evening was Canberra’s own folk-pop band, From the South. They made an inspiring choice for a musical entrée, a combination of lyrical heartbreak, cutesy harmonies, catchy tunes and solid beats. A strong mix of folk, pop, blues and country make up their own crisply unique sound.

When mains were served the audience were delighted by another all-male group, this time hailing from Melbourne. A little left of centre, Underlapper, is hard to fit into one, two or even three genres. Inspired by music of every kind, their most distinctive sounds are heavy synth and minimal vocals. The six-piece has recently released their second album, Softly Harboured, to rave reviews.

The band are taking music and turning it into something new, something that can’t just be thrown into a category and compared to the next best thing. The contrast between music and vocals is captivating, breaking away from the norm of fitting rhythm around lyrics. Underlapper makes music their first priority and keeps their lyrics and vocals simple, not to draw away any attention from their intricate sounds.

Underlapper threw in a cover and mixed up their sound with a vocal masterpiece that was Elbow’s, Any Day Now. The set was glued together with background sounds that could have confused any listener into thinking they were sitting in front of a waterfall or somewhere in the tropics.

Then came dessert. Luckily, there’s no such thing as ‘too full’ when it comes to music. Putting the icing on a very tasty cake was the sweet sounding, thought provoking, Single Twin; the solo project of Marcus Teague, once the lead singer of Melbourne’s indie rock band, Deloris.

This project is very Paul Dempsey-esque. A man trapped in the genre of his band for too long, releases a record of musical and lyrical genius. Heart wrenching stories told through untainted melodies. Teague makes light of the deep nature of his tunes by jovially telling his audience that his songs are written about mundane items such as yoghurt, bags of garbage, coins and Star Wars games, but he can’t fool all. Those who listen to his lyrics know that these words and feelings come from a much darker place. It’s also refreshing to experience a musician with great stage banter that doesn’t feel the need to pour their heart out and give away their music’s mystery.

The night ended without a good night kiss, no invite for a second date, not even an invite inside for post-dinner coffee. Although, possibly the best first date a music loving girl or guy could ask for.