Live Review: No Zu, Lucy Cliche, Simon TK

Tonight's the first Friday night of summer and things are getting hot in the hips as No Zu launch their latest 12" banger Hi Gloss.

Simon TK takes the reins at the beginning of the night and periodically between acts, bringing a mixture of old and new beats, ranging from psych to electro. The one gripe is that it would have been nice to see another 'band' filling out the line-up.

Ahead of her Meredith debut, Lucy Cliche opens to a subtle crowd. As things progress from her opening deep synth pop cuts, it becomes clear that the night has just begun as the beer garden punters trickle their way in for a boogie. The flow between 'tracks' is faultless and at times she truly mixes up the formula getting into a bit of street style house and even a little minimalist, all the while bordering on that dark electronica sound — it is really quite a diverse throw down.

It is literally a different venue come No Zu's kick off. The room is well and truly packed with dancing bodies but not nearly as packed as the stage, which has a revolving cast of members taking turns at vocals or assorted percussion in front of a backdrop of tripped-out art and even backing dancers. Come the neon-soaked sludge of Ui Yia Uia it is clear that things are a little off as sound problems rear their ugly heads, with either the mix in general or the onstage sound resulting in members being out of tune with one another. However, this may only be apparent to the more attentive ears, as the crowd are still going off to every kick drum thump. The band are so full of energy you'd think they all slammed a couple of Red Bulls right before they came on stage; they bound about the place, and the group's percussionists try to put a hole through their bongos during Raw Vis Vision. Come the end of the set, everyone, from the band to the crowd, are dripping in sweat and it feels like a job well done.

With there being no shortage of dance acts available in Melbourne, No Zu’s tropical and all 'round oddball approach to the genre is hard to ignore. Watching the band on stage recalls the higher points of Happy Mondays, with !!! also being a notable comparison, and though tonight wasn’t perfect you cant deny the motivations that the band exhibit.