Live Review: M83, Japanese Wallpaper

An M83 show has been long overdue in Brisbane. Some exciting stuff has happened in their world, namely 2011's mega opus Hurry Up, We're Dreaming, since they blew Brisbane minds with their mesmerising set at The Zoo seven years ago. Technical issues robbed us of half their playing time when they were last here in 2012 to headline Laneway, and sadly it was most of the Hurry up, We're Dreaming material that got the cut. So this moment couldn't have come sooner for the diehard fans feeling the sting, and luckily for them the current setlist is very generous when it come to Hurry Up, We're Dreaming material.

They kick things off to a whopping start with Reunion before serving up some of the fruity flavours of their recent long-player, Junk, via its joyous opener Do It, Try It. Their sound is simply splendid and the stage blooms with a vast array of lights that are arranged around decorative scaffolding — it's quite an aural-visual delight. Steve McQueen and We Own The Sky are a one-two combo that bring more moments of elation. By this point it looks pretty certain that they're not going to disappoint in the slightest tonight and the near-capacity crowd is beaming through every minute of it. Intro rolls out in all its epic wonder and, with the exception of Oblivion, they keep up the pattern of bouncing back and forth between selections from Hurry Up, We're Dreaming and Junk right up until the main set closer. Although there's quite a contrast in the moods of these two albums, the respective material  marries quite well alongside each other and gives an accentuated sense of dynamism and freshness to the set. Ok Pal, Bibi The Dog, and Wait are all flawless, and even Steve Vai's feature solo in Go! is taken care of pretty competently. The whole band is in fine form and the inclusion of a sax player works wonders — especially in Midnight City, which delivers in the biggest of ways, sounding better than ever!

Solitude was written on the setlist but unfortunately it got crossed out, reducing the encore's length to two songs. However, when those two songs are Couleurs and Lower Your Eyelids To Die With The Sun there's really not much to complain about — the night is guaranteed to end on a high note and this one is no exception. Something transcendent this way comes! The heights of their live show reach far into the stratosphere but even the lows, which there are very few of, are still a good foothold above most. It may have been a hell of a wait but Anthony Gonzalez and co certainly know how to make for lost time.