Seeing, let alone reviewing, an act like Gerling is a risky venture. There are hefty expectations hanging in the air, along with glowing memories of their past triumphs. Passing the bouncer and an impressive selection of merch, fingers are crossed for a performance that will prove there is still fuel in the Gerling engine.
With the main act not set to appear until 11.30, punters were content to wait out the suspense in the side bar. Dappled Cities Fly played to a half empty Corner, but managed to hold their own with all the confidence, swagger and bravado of a headline act. The foursome create an impressive soundscape, feeding off the energy produced by the unlikely fusion of twanging guitars, cascading keyboard sections and soaring, whimsical harmonies. From the opening line, ‘We live in the future’, ‘Peach’ was a standout for the entire night. Guitarist Tim Derricourt looks as though he is about to break an arm on his power chords, while Dave Rennick manages to lend the performance a tongue in cheek quality without taking away from the impact of his vocal twists and turns. Dappled Cities Fly clearly have their eyes set on the bright lights and bigger audiences on the horizon.
If crowd demographics are anything to go by, Gerling have netted a bunch of younger female fans with their latest offering – the aptly titled 4. The band was upfront about their intentions for the night when they hit the stage – pulling out three tracks from the new album in no-nonsense succession.
Obviously the band aren’t feeling confident enough about the crowd reaction to 4 to give it the full Gerling live treatment. Eyes down and focused on their instruments, they worked through the opener without hitting a single wrong note. Although they earned their stripes and fans though their outlandish live performances and onstage antics, Gerling are accomplished musicians. ‘Good Timing’, ‘Turning the Screws’ and ’When the Night Comes’ are tight, multi-layered indie rock anthems in their own right. The hand clapping rhythm of previous albums is in tact, coupled this time around with a more textured sound and less frenetic pacing.
Long time fans weren’t left wanting, as the boys stepped into their comfort zone and pulled out all the stops in well honed, but slightly less down and dirty performances of crowd pleasers ‘Senorita’ and ‘Who’s Your Daddy?’.
Overall the energy of the electronic wonderboys didn’t transfer across to their new material. There was a schizophrenic feel to the show, and in the end, Gerling gave into the crowd’s urge to dance and scream the lyrics to their favorites. At this stage in the game it is probably a good call – but the new album deserves a bit more fanfare, unless Gerling want to be playing ‘best of’ sets before their time.
