True Live - The Shape ofThings

Tue 24th Oct, 2006 in Music Reviews

True Live have developed a strong following in their home town of Melbourne, based on a series of residencies that have made them live favourites. It’s a path set by the success of The Cat Empire, who were selling out this city’s venues well before launching their debut record. Both groups have attracted a certain amount of sneering contempt from the coolsie set, largely because they’re trained musicians. It’s not very romantic is it? You’re meant to be a struggling idiot-savant to earn true cred. Or something like that.

Yet, while Cat Empire has failed to capture the once exciting sound of their live shows on disc, True Live have had no such problem. Cat Empire have been successful as a live band because there simply aren’t that many chances to see energetic, young bands playing their ‘world music’ influenced sound. However, when they finally recorded an album, it sounded a pale imitation of their influences; and, perhaps surprisingly, a weak version of their own live shows. Yet True Live are no imitators and they’re not content to simply be the local branch office of a foreign sound.

Most hip-hop producers would be satisfied to simply sample their strings – casting a few royalty cheques in the direction of David Axelrod - but True Live come equipped with their own string set. Featuring live double bass, cello and violin the band makes Kanye West’s Late Orchestration album sound a patchy affair; Kanye often sounding like he was using the string arrangements to simply raise his already soaring ego. Strings are not an addition to the sound of True Live; they are the sound of True Live. Add keys and clipped drumming and it’s easy to hear why they’ve become a live force to be reckoned with.

Launching with a brief opening instrumental The Shape of Things sets off on a dazzling display of musical prowess and showmanship. It’s easy to hear how anti-consumerist anthems TV and Question This have become live favourites; their choruses eagerly consumed by audiences in full sing-along voice. Be That Cat lurches with a rubbery bounce, while Truth of This rolls with laid back beats and a smoky drawl from the a more contemplative RhyNo. Blue MC features on Evolution, her gorgeously melancholy vocal and a jazzy piano from providing a captivating backing to effective RhyNo’s strident raps. TZU’s Joelistics is also used to great effect on the tale of ego gone wild, Carry Yaself.

Let Out may feature a loop that suggests they’ve spun their share of Chemical Brothers records, but the closest comparison to the True Live sound is probably  the Roni Size and Reprazent album New Forms. Like New Forms it’s tough, it’s lush, it’s epic, it’s adventurous and most of all it’s a fresh sound unafraid to blur genres – mixing hip-hop, drum and bass, cinematic strings with a distinctly local character.  

Like many MCs True Live’s RhyNO caries himself with a fair amount of swagger and bravado. Some people could consider this arrogance, but then when you’ve leading a group that’s produced a debut record as fine as this then you’re entitled to strut about with a smug grin plastered on your face. With The Shape of Things True Live have proven that they’re not just the best on the local scene, they’re ready to take on the world.