Live Review: Abbe May - Mojo's Bar

23 May 2012 | 12:36 pm | Simon Rundin

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Local rockers Loose Lips – previously named The Fags – opened the night with their Nick Cave-influenced guitar rock, keeping the then medium-sized crowd mostly interested. Their set consisted of mostly mid-tempo rockers, though a set highlight was a slower song mid-set. A few of their songs sounded a bit too similar to get this scribe excited and consequently the set dragged on toward the end, however the obviously talented band put on a commendable performance.

Next was Tomás Ford. While his musical style was at odds with the rock theme of the night, Ford's disco set was great and the crowd lapped it up. A true entertainer, Ford had the crowd eating out of his hand. While the music was good, the true highlights of his set was his antics and crowd interaction (including multiple times dancing on the bar and getting people to punch him in the face). The set, which included a Kylie Minogue cover, ended with Ford coaxing the crowd to carry him from the stage to the bar.

Abbe May and her band finished off the already great night with a tight set. While the first half of the set, which started with Mammalian Locomotion, leaned heavily toward songs off her latest album Design Desire, the second half branched out into her earlier catalogue. With the crowd already warmed up from Ford's set, the now-packed Mojo's came alive with May's crowd interaction. The obviously well-rehearsed band played an almost flawless set, finishing off a great night of rock'n'roll'n'disco.