Live Review: Client Liaison, Andras Fox

Andras Fox opens with a DJ set, which has the crowd grooving along at a mild pace – excitement is in the air, but the party hasn’t started just yet. The talented Fox seems to be everywhere at the moment – as a DJ, through his collaborative work with Oscar Key Sung and with his own material – which is great news.

Known for their wonderful, ‘80s-inspired, electronic power-pop, with a dress sense to match, Client Liaison play to a hometown crowd tonight promoting their self-titled, debut EP. When the curtain lifts the first thing we notice, and have a little giggle at, is the gigantic, ice-sculpture swan center stage. Harvey Miller is poised, surrounded by his synths. Monte Morgan immediately grasps the audience’s attention as he waltzes in, swiftly removing his tan trench coat to reveal a tan suit with a satin pink tie. The ‘80s have arrived.

They start strongly with single Free Of Fear and from the get-go Morgan is a commanding presence. Not only has he got incredible vocal power, he has eccentric-yet-exceptionally coordinated dance moves that don’t quit throughout the evening’s performance. Client Liaison do an imaginative rework of Kimbra’s 90s Music, which is met with great enthusiasm and nods of approval. We notice that Pretty Lovers is sending quite a few of the girls in the crowd – particularly those up against the barrier – into a bit of a tizzy, but Morgan and Miller stay focused; it’s clear they’ve come to conquer the whole crowd and not just win the affections of some swooning girls. For all the gimmicks and shoulder pads, this duo take their work very seriously and are professional in every sense of the word.

Feeling is Client Liaison’s power ballad and it goes down flawlessly with the crowd swaying and singing along. While it may be the slowest song in their set, the mood has in no way dropped. New single Queen is also met with riotous applause and it’s obvious that these two are thrilled to be playing to such as responsive home crowd.

Morgan races off between songs to remove various layers of clothing and for subtle costume changes throughout the night. The final time of which is for Client Liaison’s encore, where Morgan embraces the glam side of the ‘80s with tight black jeans and an open, gold sequined jacket. He looks every bit the majestic popstar from a bygone era he was born to be. What Client Liaison bring is unique, fun, highly danceable and completely mesmerising. In the words of the great men, That’s Desire.