Live Review: LANY, Ric Rufio

It's hard to believe tonight isn't sold out judging by the line that stretches down Swanston Street and around the corner for the first night of Los Angeles alternative outfit LANY's first stop on their tour of Australia and New Zealand.

Electronic-pop act Ric Rufio graces the stage first for a funky and soulful set. After pushing through feedback issues, Rufio owns the stage. Sultry vocals mixed with pulsing synth beats provide a super-smooth, chilled environment and the crowd gets into the groove during songs such as Rewind, which he strips back, nailing a killer falsetto. Rufio is charismatic and works the stage effortlessly, demonstrating true love for the music he makes.

Ear-piercing screams rip through the crowd as the lights dim and LANY take the stage. The screams get even louder as lead singer Paul Klein stands front and centre, kicking things off with opening song Dumb Stuff off their latest, self-titled release. Donning some incredibly funky striped pants, Klein owns the title of frontman for the duration of their 90-minute set, in awe of the crowd's ability to scream out every lyric to every song, even the new ones such as Purple Teeth and Good Girls. Often lying on the floor to be face-to-face with front-row fans or jumping into the crowd, Klein knows the girls dig him and one even hands him a rose mid-set. Bandmates Les Priest and Jake Goss do fade into the background at times, but provide an eclectic and ethereal atmosphere for the band's dream-pop tunes.

LANY cover everything, the old and the new, and the audience need only hear a synth beat or a guitar note to recognise the track and scream even louder than before. "We haven't slept in three days!" Klein exclaims. With this in mind, Klein's highly energetic dancing sure is impressive. A spine-chilling outro to Current Location, stripped-back with only Klein and his keyboard, ends the set. Not even a second passes before an encore is demanded and granted, and LANY officially end with their hit ILYSB, during which the crowd basically perform the vocals for Klein.

LANY are on the verge of seriously breaking it big here. They've got a really good thing going on and if tonight's show is anything to go by, it's really only the tip of the iceberg for the Californian rockers.