Eilish Gilligan and her live band were the first to perform tonight. The delightful indie pop songstress supplied an inspiring opening to a show that was to be full of deep vibes centred around swirling and colourful synth chords. With a unique voice that suited the mood of the venue, she demanded full attention with a performance that was humble, yet extremely captivating in its delivery.
The mysterious OCDANTAR wasted no time in between sets, taking to the stage quickly. I had read about this guy but never knew of the bassy, ambient synth music that he has been pumping out over recent months.
The crowd began to become restless following the mind blowing set from OCDANTAR, as Saatsuma seemed to take a lifetime to appear. Entertaining the crowd instead was the video for the single that was being launched, Floating. A solid meld of insane choreography with lead vocalist Memphis Kelly at the forefront, the clip explores themes of insomnia that would have been easier to understand if the lights were turned down to protect the glare from hitting the projector.
The band were greeted with cheers from the audience, and immediately started vibing with the track Wait For Me. The song showcased Kelly’s incredible vocal skills, as she sang melodies that made you feel like you were reaching for the sky. Dancing broke out in the middle of the crowd to the delight of the band, who seemed extremely grateful for the solid turn out.
Harmonisation with the backing vocals is the real strength of this band, helping to set them apart from other electronic acts. The descending piano melody of Feel It All provided a nice, jazzy undertone that helped create interest over the increasingly repetitive drums. As the end of this song neared, I wasn’t expecting to be launched into space with the incredible instrumentation hitting harder than ever. The crowd seemed as shocked as I was, and as Kelly picked up her tambourine and began slapping it with force to the beat, this track provided a wave of emotion that no other song from either acts had provided.
New single Floating closed out the night and prompted huge cheers from the audience. Extremely soulful and vibrant, the strange synth melody complimented the live instrumentation perfectly, adding an essence of dissonance and unease that was put to rest with Kelly’s vocals. The huge basslines were more dub than ever and the crowd began to dance more ferociously right until the very end.
BY BENJAMIN POTTER
Loved: Memphis Kelly’s incredible vocals.
Hated: The glare of the lights during the visual elements.
Drank: Boags.
