Live Review: Boys Boys Boys!, Axe Girl, The Surf Rabbits

The stage was decorated with plastic beach paraphernalia, from palm trees to balloons, which coincidentally matched with the aesthetic of The Surf Rabbits, who opened the night with a pleasing mix of alt-rock and punk. The band were a sizable presence and helped establish the fervour of the gig for the patrons. Axe Girl followed and commenced with a selection of some of their notable singles, including Give Me Your Tee Shirt and California. Another single, Silence, was a highlight of their performance as its rapidly alternating punk rhythms on the lead guitar and addictive bass line allowed the band to demonstrate the suitability of lead singer's Addison Axe's vocals for the genre in which they play. Not only did the band impose good music on the crowd, there was also a sense of humour exhibited between the band members, where apparently all the song names on their setlist had been mixed around, allowing for a comical debacle to form between songs. Axe Girl's performance was brought to a close by issuing the dance challenge to Boys Boys Boys! with a rock rendition of a popular song.

When Boys Boys Boys! emerged, the instrumentation on the stage had changed from regular guitars and bass to three individually standing synth keyboards. With a sound at first like a combination between synth-pop and The B-52s, Boys Boys Boys!'s quirky, almost hyper and energetic stage presence reflected in the fervour demonstrated by the crowd, who were more than engaged in the performers' music. Much of their material came from the 2013 album, We Are Excited About Everything. Casio Joy, one of the band's earliest singles, was played that night. Led by the lilting vocals of Bridget Turner and backed by Alwyn Nixon-Lloyd and Koko Wallace on synth, the single demonstrated the laidback, pop-infused synth rhythms the group embodies. Holiday also provided a pop-infused quirkiness, with upbeat synth rhythms and lyrics that celebrated spending another person's money. Boys Boys Boys! finished their set by responding to Axe Girl's challenge, covering the intro to No Doubt's Don't Speak and I'm Just A Girl.