Live Review: London Grammar, Vancouver Sleep Clinic

A super charged early crowd, all eager to get a good spot for this sold out gig, filled the Metro Theatre as soon as doors opened, much to the delight of support act Vancouver Sleep Clinic. The Brisbane three-piece were visibly delighted to be warming up for one of the hottest bands of the year and playing to such a big crowd. Looking like an indie Harry Styles with the spine-tingling voice of James Blake, singer Tim Bettinson struggled with a few technical difficulties to begin with, but soon got into his stride, putting his beautiful vocals and acoustic guitar to tracks including first single Vapour. An impressive performance for such a young musician.

There wasn't a spare spot on the floor as UK trio London Grammar took to the stage to huge screams and cheers. Their first sideshow following their Falls and Southbound festival circuit was an instant sell out and a mixed crowd of all ages welcomed them with gusto. Drenched in white light as ethereal as her voice, singer Hannah Reid held everyone in a trance as her brooding vocals swooped and glided through an extended version of hit Hey Now. The crowd were hooked for the rest of the set, no-one moving an inch or even talking for the next 50 minutes.

Darling Are You Gonna Leave Me followed before Reid moved to the keys to join member Dot Major for a beautiful rendition of Interlude. Things picked up the pace a bit with hit Wasting My Young Years before an excellent cover of Chris Isaak's Wicked Game. Stay Awake, their Kavinsky Nightcall cover and Metal & Dust finished the short set, the band very graciously thanking the crowd and triple j in particular for their huge support in breaking them into the market and helping them sell out their first ever Australian tour. Reid even let slip a potential second tour later in the year for all of those who missed out on tickets. As a brief encore, the band returned to finish up with latest hit Strong. A solid performance, but a few more tracks wouldn't have gone amiss.