Live Review: Foster The People, Alice Ivy

Alice Ivy (known by the name of Annika Schmarsel when off stage) has a yellow jumpsuit-clad guest guitarist up onstage with her when we arrive and they bounce like the stage is a tambourine. Schmarsel then introduces Georgia Van Etten "all the way from the UK" to the stage to supply those soulful Touch vocals. Schmarsel's infectious beats crackle like milk on Coco Pops. She encourages us to boogie along with Charlie, which is not hard to do once the faux-brass blasts invade the arrangement.

After raising her champers skyward and announcing both her parents are present, Schmarsel says, "If anyone sees my mum, she literally looks like me. Go buy her a beer". Schmarsel sings, too. Is there anything at all she can't do amazingly? Girlfriend has mad energy and a luminescent aura. Almost Here evokes the best of The Avalanches and something tells us 2018 is Alice Ivy's year.

Forum Theatre's initiative where you get 50 cents off the drink price if you reuse your receptacle is quality. Props to the punter wearing a white short-sleeved shirt with toucan print - mad style.

There's an obscure soundtrack playing during set-up time, which is probably thanks to Foster The People. After a munted crew reveal themselves through a lack of spatial awareness within the stage-left crowd, we abscond to the stage-right front stalls. Aforementioned soundtrack seems to be on a loop and, as it finally crescendoes, the gents enter their stage space to much applause and appreciative whistling.

Um, where the FUCK did Mark Foster get that black silk bomber jacket with Blondie embroidered on the back and how much does he want for it? He's taken Movember well into January (as have a couple of the other band members) and Pay The Man from Foster The People's most recent Sacred Hearts Club album is followed by Helena Beat from the band's much loved debut album, Torches. All present know the words to this one and we're off and pogoing.

Backed by double drummers (often adopting different patterns that combine to create impossibly fast beats) and double keys - actually, up to five multi-instrumentalists back Foster - those beseeching vocals make us swoon collectively. Foster himself is a master of many instruments. And we're never short on dance-inducing percussion throughout. It's definitely still the early material that resonates, however, with Don't Stop (Color On The Walls) another clear highlight. An impressive cover of Blitzkrieg Bop by Ramones ("Hey ho, let's go!") demonstrates the band's versatility.

Foster tells us Supermodel was written as "an apology" of sorts, before encouraging us to own our relationship mistakes. He then adds "it's a fun song" and urges us to sing along. Foster The People's music often celebrates contrasts in this way; dancing with tears in your eyes. There's some sexy lighting design that utilises synchronised beams of white light slicing through a red wash.

He probably wouldn't sign up for it, but Foster would definitely be a Dancing With The Stars contender . No doubt about it, Foster's one cool customer. He leaves a part of his soul up there on that stage.

"You say, 'Now what's your style and who do you listen to?' WHO CAAAARES!" - Call It What You Want inspires a killer clap along. CHOON! "I wanna applaud you guys for voting Yes, that's a big step towards unity," Foster commends. He then stresses the importance of celebrating difference: "Who the fuck are YOU to think you're better than someone else?" This makes a great segue into Sit Next To Me. Beefed-up live incarnations further elevate our old faves, especially Miss You with the sample that sounds like stepping on a line of rubber duckies.

Foster The People then fare us well and leave the stage, but it's the ultimate encore fake-out since they're yet to play Pumped Up Kicks. In fact, the crowd chants for this smash hit, "PUMPED. UP. KICKS!" with insistent claps punctuating each syllable. One by one the musicians return to the stage, slowly building the next track. It doesn't appear to be the one we wanna hear, but soon morphs into Pumped Up Kicks and euphoria ensues.

During this sublime song Foster grabs a front-row punter's phone and sashays the length of the stage while filming the crowd before returning it to its rightful owner. They close with the hip-hop delivery of  Sid & Nancy, complete with Foster's alluring crab/MC Hammer dance that transports him from one side of the stage to the other in the blink of an eye. Foster The People are SO much more than just Pumped Up Kicks, glorious though that song may be.