Youth Lagoon, Broods @ The Ding Dong Lounge, Melbourne (05/02/2014)
A full house for a Wednesday night, Melbourne’s Ding Dong Lounge presented itself with dim lights, obscure artwork and bonsai plants, adding to the overall feel of the underground venue tucked away in trendy Chinatown.
The crowd revealed itself as an interesting mix of people, ranging from your expected hipsters to your somewhat older demographic. It was clear to see that some people were there to satisfy their fascination with Youth Lagoon’s unique sound, and other’s were there in mere appreciation of Trevor Powers' impressive technical abilities.
New Zealand brother and sister duo Broods opened the evening. Their popular sound resonated well with the Melbourne crowd, with their hit single Bridges proving itself a crowd favourite amongst their other unknown tracks. Lead singer Georgia Nott impressed me with her strong and energetic vocals, reminding me of CHVRCHES' Lauren Bayberry at times, and also resemblant of Aluna George and Robyn. Although the set was enjoyable, Broods’ limited performing experience did shine through, but in a positive way- their potential was uplifting and left me with the thought “I saw these guys before they were big”.
Youth Lagoon returned to the stage shortly after setting up their own equipment and instruments, low key and humble enough to do so. The decorative and reflecting disco balls hanging above the stage worked well for Broods, but suddenly felt incongruous in such a mellow setting and captivating opening of Mute, from Youth Lagoon’s latest EP Wondrous Bughouse which explores themes of the metaphysical universe.
The equipment and instruments, which barely fit on the small venue’s stage, looked extremely complicated to operate. Combined with Powers’ natural awkwardness, this would explain his limited crowd interaction that would remain throughout the evening. The crowd stood quietly with anticipation as Canons, a hit from their debut EP The Year of Hibernation unfolded early. The track, much like the whole record, is based around minimalism and hypnotic ambience and explores psychological dysphoria and mental distress. This left the crowd in a complete trance. As the evening progressed, so did the haunting keyboard, soft dreamy vocals and addictive synth. Powers let his keyboard consume him and possess all movements of his body. Attic Doctor from Wondrous Bughouse was a standout track as was Dropla, the definite highlight of the evening as Powers stared into the souls of the crowd whilst repetitively singing “You’ll never die”.
The extent of Powers’ interaction with the crowd pretty much extended itself to “Does anybody have an alcoholic beverage?” once provided with one from the bar staff, he humorously muttered “My prayers have been answered”. A man of very few words, the crowd appreciated this small demonstration of comfort. Although it was easy to zone out in the many improvisations and interludes accomplished by the band, Powers gets absolutely lost in his performance and his abilities to so fittingly transfer his mind to his instruments is not only a beautiful experience, but a unique one. Powers has said in the past “I’m not a gifted speaker, so explaining things is difficult for me. But music always makes sense”. This is executed with clarity through his overall stage presence.
As the night drew to an end, the crowd were awarded with an obvious and guaranteed encore including popular track Raspberry Cane, but unfortunately leaving out the hit Afternoon from The Year of Hibernation. Overall, Youth Lagoon provided the crowd with a content ending to a very special set.
Adrianna Connelly
The crowd revealed itself as an interesting mix of people, ranging from your expected hipsters to your somewhat older demographic. It was clear to see that some people were there to satisfy their fascination with Youth Lagoon’s unique sound, and other’s were there in mere appreciation of Trevor Powers' impressive technical abilities.
New Zealand brother and sister duo Broods opened the evening. Their popular sound resonated well with the Melbourne crowd, with their hit single Bridges proving itself a crowd favourite amongst their other unknown tracks. Lead singer Georgia Nott impressed me with her strong and energetic vocals, reminding me of CHVRCHES' Lauren Bayberry at times, and also resemblant of Aluna George and Robyn. Although the set was enjoyable, Broods’ limited performing experience did shine through, but in a positive way- their potential was uplifting and left me with the thought “I saw these guys before they were big”.
Youth Lagoon returned to the stage shortly after setting up their own equipment and instruments, low key and humble enough to do so. The decorative and reflecting disco balls hanging above the stage worked well for Broods, but suddenly felt incongruous in such a mellow setting and captivating opening of Mute, from Youth Lagoon’s latest EP Wondrous Bughouse which explores themes of the metaphysical universe.
The equipment and instruments, which barely fit on the small venue’s stage, looked extremely complicated to operate. Combined with Powers’ natural awkwardness, this would explain his limited crowd interaction that would remain throughout the evening. The crowd stood quietly with anticipation as Canons, a hit from their debut EP The Year of Hibernation unfolded early. The track, much like the whole record, is based around minimalism and hypnotic ambience and explores psychological dysphoria and mental distress. This left the crowd in a complete trance. As the evening progressed, so did the haunting keyboard, soft dreamy vocals and addictive synth. Powers let his keyboard consume him and possess all movements of his body. Attic Doctor from Wondrous Bughouse was a standout track as was Dropla, the definite highlight of the evening as Powers stared into the souls of the crowd whilst repetitively singing “You’ll never die”.
The extent of Powers’ interaction with the crowd pretty much extended itself to “Does anybody have an alcoholic beverage?” once provided with one from the bar staff, he humorously muttered “My prayers have been answered”. A man of very few words, the crowd appreciated this small demonstration of comfort. Although it was easy to zone out in the many improvisations and interludes accomplished by the band, Powers gets absolutely lost in his performance and his abilities to so fittingly transfer his mind to his instruments is not only a beautiful experience, but a unique one. Powers has said in the past “I’m not a gifted speaker, so explaining things is difficult for me. But music always makes sense”. This is executed with clarity through his overall stage presence.
As the night drew to an end, the crowd were awarded with an obvious and guaranteed encore including popular track Raspberry Cane, but unfortunately leaving out the hit Afternoon from The Year of Hibernation. Overall, Youth Lagoon provided the crowd with a content ending to a very special set.
Adrianna Connelly