Live Review: Grouplove, Mikhael Paskalev - Metro Theatre

27 July 2014 | 3:31 pm | Deborah Jackson

"It was impossible not to get lost in the atmosphere."

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Grouplove brought the soaring vocals and wild energy that they are revered for to Sydney’s Metro Theatre, in a prelude to their Splendour In The Grass appearance.

Mikhael Paskalev opened the night playing a short set that sufficiently warmed up the sold-out crowd for the main act. His pop/indie/country inspired hits including I Spy and Jive Babe were well received by the pumped up audience that were on their feet and dancing through its entirety.

But it was Grouplove who owned the night, as the Californian indie rockers exploded onto the stage, with vocalist Hannah Hooper looking every inch the diva, channeling her inner disco, wearing a rhinestone studded figure-hugging unitard.

The crowd were lapping it up from the very first verse of I’m With You, with guitarist Christian Zucconi demonstrating not only his impeccable vocals, but also his unfaltering energy, as he almost immediately launched himself into the audience, and crowd surfed his way back to the stage.

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It was impossible not to get lost in the atmosphere as Zucconi threw his guitar high into the air, catching it seamlessly, and encouraging the audience to scream and howl with him, boosting the energy to almost euphoric limits.

School Boy and Tongue Tied showcased some familiar Grouplove territory, with crazy instrumentals and ridiculously powerful vocals from both Zucconi and Hooper, while covers of Beyonce’s Drunk In Love and The Beastie Boys Sabotage had the crowd begging for more.

Happily obliging, the quintet performed an encore of Borderlines and Aliens, Ways To Go and Colours, as Hooper shook hands with the front row, and Rabin and Zucconi crowd surfed their way through the adoring crowd one last time.