Live Review: Bag Raiders

Electronic trio, Bag Raiders, played enthusiastically at Adelaide's Fat Controller last night. Despite potentially disastrous PA problems early on, they pulled off a blinding dance party, relatively unscathed by technical difficulties early in the set.

Via the band's Messenger, they confessed it was "…a crazy show but it was really fun in the end!" - referring to the technical blank space that had visibly shook the three band mates, who, despite the momentary departure of light and music, recovered quickly and in good humour.

Now playing as a trio, Bag Raiders stand out in a landscape of exclusively studio backing tracks with live instrumentation, with the inclusion of drums, synths, guitars and live vocals. In the live setting, they were true to their studio sound, demonstrating a knack for multi-instrumentalism and a communication not often exhibited by electronic acts on stage. 

The band have received recent attention for the 2009 hit Shooting Stars and today the single still sits at number 29 on the US Billboard electronic charts. While the popular single capped off the evening and was a highlight for the crowd, it was sensibly placed last and only iced the cake, allowing the crowd to take in varying degrees of their almost decade long repertoire.

Special thanks goes to the fourth 'silent' member of the group - the sound guy. The set was rich and natural, allowing a diverse mix of pre-recorded and live sounds to navigate the venue's space. Having said that, the crowd was obviously just having fun and considering that the whole PA system took a dump mid-set and barely an eye lid was batted, the fact that any sound came out after that was good enough for them (even though it was notably well mixed). At the end of the day, it sounded great and people were dancing.

Overall, between the silky pop, trial flutes and Bowie-like changes in pace, the performance was diverse, energetic and most importantly, a lot of fun. Whether they remain a trio or grow on stage instrumentally, Bag Raiders are reliable for a non-stop dance party and prove they can still throw a good bash even in the face of adversity.