Live Review: Cloud Control

Although many people who reside in the isolated city of Perth are now heralding the end of one of the hottest summers on record, Cloud Control's performance at the Northshore Tavern in Hillarys gave a sense that in reality, this summer will never be brought to a close.

With the stage constructed out of the same wood found on coastal beach shacks and promotional footage being streamed behind them from an overhead projector, depicting the nuances and positive bohemia that often comes with coastal living, any observer could think that for a second they were standing in a venue near the beach rather than a tavern located in a suburban shopping centre. Although Cloud Control's set was rather brief, as they had to go to another venue later on the same night, the whole unplugged affair was a pleasing take on their music. The instrumentation was stripped back to the bare essentials, with Al Wright on acoustic guitar and Ulrich Lenffer on a pair of drums, with a notable exception of Heidi Lenffer, whose signature key playing was kept the same to retain the unique sound that the band played. Much of the track selection came from their recently released album Dream Cave album. Some of the songs included Birthday, which with its light rhythmic strumming from the acoustic guitar and steady beat from the drums caused the crowd to slowly move their feet to an atmosphere of acoustic music and jugs of Corona. Popular single Scar, when stripped back, added a certain degree of emotional intensity; with a strong chorus that lyrically conveyed the pains of perseverance, it easily moved the crowd near the stage to chant in unison, causing the venue to transform into a small festival. Promises also evoked a tense attitude of desperate wanting for someone's love by providing a strong, lyrically-charged chorus. One of Cloud Control's final songs was an acoustic rendition of their Like A Version cover of Kid Cudi's The Pursuit Of Happiness, which added a hip hop beat and harmonising vocals to the band's set. On a positive whim, the band allowed the audience to dance to the final song on stage; and at that moment, any observer could feel truly connected to the band's sound as they raised their hands to Cloud Control's catchy music.