As Melbourne Music Week entered the home stretch, label and management group Good Manners threw together a lineup of talented local electronic artists.
I’lls were definitely the highlight of the evening. Despite being down one member, they delivered a set full of complex, polyrhythmic tracks to great effect. The band dwelled in sonic landscapes of their own creation, dipping into low-end valleys before soaring to synth-laden highs. The sound system got a hearty workout – an onslaught of bass pushed the musty air around the venue, counterbalanced by ethereal, washy synths. Backed by violently blinking lights, I’lls’ set was more an attack on the senses than a performance. It’s truly a shame the band are on an indefinite hiatus.
Lucianblomkamp was quirkier than the other acts on the bill. Teasing with dark industrial synths and violin at the start, the local artist was supported by guitar and saxophone samples, bass guitar, fingerpicked violin, and a guest vocalist. However it wasn’t enough to distract from the uniform synth parts, which were lacklustre compared to the action of I’lls.
Kllo mellowed things out. Rather than getting eerie or frenetic like the earlier acts, they laid out a set of house-styled R&B. There was a sprinkling of UK garage, but it was mostly in the same vein as Banoffee’s early work – slow, melodic and focused around the vocals.
Banoffee performed exceptionally well, proving her evolution as an artist. Since last year’s Melbourne Music Week, she’s transformed from a minimalist R&B performer with a quirky nervousness to a confident headliner. While the pop-oriented aspects of her earlier work remain, she’s developed a substantially richer range. Tonight’s set encompassed warped beats, vocal duets and onstage dancers. Her older tracks were barely recognisable, remixed into livelier soundscapes. In the final minutes of her set, crowd members spilled onto the stage to dance and crowd surf.
BY THOMAS BRAND
Photo by Ian Laidlaw
Loved: I’lls. Really good.
Hated: I kept getting asked if I’m selling ketamine. Fair enough I’m in a hospital, but do I look like vet?
Drank: Beers I shouldn’t have. I feel guilty and I’m sorry.
