Live Review: Collarbones, Naysayer & Gilsun, Lamtech, Gnome

15 October 2012 | 4:54 pm | Alex Hardy

Celebrating the launch of their new album Die Young, Collarbones brought a refreshing mix of electronic musical acts together for the occasion.

Gnome opened the evening, decorating chilled beats with gorgeous harmonies. They fused their voices together perfectly in that beautiful way that only siblings can and, although they were fairly uninteresting to watch – standing timidly side by side, poking synths and pattering drum pads – their tightly bound voices soared around the largely empty room.

DJs kept the energy seamless between acts as the crowd began to trickle in, but hip hop act Lamtech really dropped the ball. Sloppy and unrehearsed, they interrupted every song with directions to the DJ, to freestyle or explain the lyrics. Their set was chaotic, awkward and had zilch momentum, which was unfortunate, as once their beats actually got going, they were energetic, catchy and promising. Regardless, they seemed to be enjoying themselves and the crowd was too polite not to clap.

Collarbones were super-slick in comparison. Disjointed samples contrasted deliciously with Marcus Whale's smooth and soulful pop vocals and, when the beat dropped, it was impossible not to groove. The black room, bleachers and swirling lights were the perfect setting for their dreamy recounts of naïve adolescence and teen love, while Whale's voice, whether straight or drenched with effects, was like velvet on the ears.

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Second headliner Naysayer & Gilsun provided an extraordinary audio-visual experience. A large screen dominated the stage as they mashed snippets of classic film and television, with images of nature at its most savage and beautiful. A soundtrack of deep house and electro accompanied the hypnotic visuals and it was hard to believe that they were mixing and editing live, as everything was so impeccably timed and in-sync. It was impressive, creative and extremely entertaining.