Live Review: Odesza, Charles Murdoch

It’s Australia Day eve and Howler proves to be a popular watering hole for many taking advantage of not having to work on Monday.

Those lucky enough to have tickets to this sold-out show slowly make their way into the band room catch the opening act. Brisbane producer Charles Murdoch creates an ambient blend of diverse genres with smooth, danceable rhythms. The deep, electronic house progressively builds with complex layers and textures that transition into different directions while maintaining a consistent style. He introduces heavier synths laced with sampling snippets and vocal manipulation that flows beautifully.

Seattle-based electronic production duo Odesza arrive on stage about half an hour later than their advertised start time, but are quickly forgiven as they capture our attention and transform everyone into a trance-like state. Their infectious, ambient melodies are full of rich and colourful, dreamy electronic sounds, and provide a delightful sensory overload.

It’s their first-ever Australian headlining tour off the back of a spot on Melbourne’s Sugar Mountain festival line-up. One half of the duo, Harrison Mills, explains they last visited Australia in 2014 for Perth’s Circo Festival followed by a string of sideshows. They are both excited to be back sharing some of the fresh new summer anthems from their debut LP In Return.

The show is an impressive aesthetic vision with strobe lights flashing across the stage synchronised with coloured lighting along the wooden wall panels. The visuals are further enhanced by a backdrop of animated graphics that draw attention to the stage. Combining organic vocal arrangements and samples with energetic drum instrumentals, Odesza’s explosive set delivers dreamy chillwave bliss infused with infectious melodies and heavy bass drops.

The duo is fascinating to watch as they work incredibly hard, fixating on every unique element and varied pitch to wrap it up in a flawless, continuous flow. They feed off the audience’s energy and constantly push the performance to new heights. The contagious electronic production creates a sense of euphoria and it’s impossible not to dance along to. They share some of their most recent remixes including Sia’s Big Girls Cry and ZHU’s Faded, bringing new life to each song with a fresh and innovative reinterpretation. They dedicate their encore to a beloved sound guy called Chris as they encourage us to sing Happy Birthday to him before their final track, Say My Name.