Live Review: PVT, Collarbones & Elroy 4.0

It's a pitiful turnout that greets local producer Elroy 4.0. A relative veteran of the Brisbane leftfield electronic scene, Messr 4.0 delivers a typically serviceable set pitched roughly halfway between Warp Records' old and new guard – icy synths and cold electronics rubbing up against shuffling hip hop and post-dubstep rhythms with ease. His sound isn't especially distinctive but it's well-articulated and professional in presentation. His playing to a crowd of thirty is unfortunate.

Collarbones receive greater patronage – but, really, deserve less. Despite consolidating their sound on record with 2012's Die Young, they're still very much a pair of producers more so than performers. Consisting almost exclusively of backing tracks and live vocals, their set looks, feels and sounds amateurish – from the overly loud vocals and awkward banter to the poorly mixed backing. A talented pair, Collarbones have yet to find their feet on stage.

A long time ago, PVT could have been described similarly. Even as recently as 2011, their performances were an odd mish-mash of styles and approaches – the globetrotting three-piece always finding it difficult to fully synchronise their disparate blend of avant-garde electronics, classic synth-pop and angular post-punk. Spending the past handful of years touring Europe and America in support of artists like Bloc Party and Warpaint seems to have straightened them out.

Tonight's performance is revelatory. While leaning heavily on new album Homosapien, the trio's performance still articulates a singular aesthetic with unbelievable power and precision. Vocal-led cuts like Window and recent single Vertigo sit comfortably alongside instrumental numbers like Didn't I Furious and vice versa. The improvisation that has marred previous sets, meanwhile, has now become focused and explosive – an electro-acoustic percussive breakdown in Electric proving especially spectacular.

The sheer muscle of the band's performance is unbalancing. While somewhat abstract and romantic on record, PVT's live aesthetic is one of stomach-clenching grunt. The sawtoothed bass of Light Up Bright Fires, O Soundtrack My Heart's searing, distorted synth – they hit the audience like a brick wall launched from a cannon. It is somewhat disappointing that the band's set steers relatively clear of both 2008's O Soundtrack My Heart and 2010's Church With No Magic (singles exempted) – but their actual performance is largely faultless.