Live Review: Toy, Cobwebbs

Cobwebbs are given the task of warming up the sparse crowd tonight and they do a credible job. Their sound hovers somewhere around Joy Division with a touch of shoegaze thrown in and the tracks have a distorted, muddied appeal. Vocalist Sam Wightman's voice is atonal and disinterested, while the guitars are all mid-end, repeated notes and consistent tone, while a propulsive drum beat ensures the tracks don't bog down in the slower moments. Unfortunately, the banter mostly consists of requests for changes in the foldback and cultivated disinterest, limiting their stage presence. The tracks begin to blur together after a while – without any defining features, what is immersive for 20 minutes becomes repetitious over a much longer set. Still, the sound is enjoyably abrasive and played with conviction – definitely a band worth following as they evolve.

The crowd has swelled somewhat by the time Toy take the stage, but it's still suffering from the expensive-show-on-a-Monday-night-in-Brisbane-winter blues.The band seem to take influences from the same place as Cobwebbs – indeed they even display the same broad disinterest in the audience – but this is a shinier version of both music and attitude, more pop than outsider. The psych trappings are dominant here and somehow clearer for being played off against catchy riffs. Traditional indie-rock leads into several minutes of instrumental guitar play, where the band seems to be particularly enjoying themselves.

It's a surprisingly effortless melding of styles – Toy are equally convincing as psych as they are rock, plus they manage to revel in what could be a retro style without feeling in any way dated. There's more control than wildness to the instrumental freak-outs, but that's what allows them to cross back-and-forth comfortably and the band use the space well, playing with bass melodies and keyboard leads that are, by necessity, relegated to backing parts during the straighter parts of the set.

The keys do sit out a little too prominently at times, but the high sweeping notes make for an interesting interplay with singer Tom Dougall's deep voice and, when the keys do go quiet, it's a noticeable absence, with the guitars too rhythmic to pick up the slack. The set is well structured, taking advantage of the different ground that the band covers to keep the elements fresh and appealing. Psych-rock has a tendency towards over-indulgence – too many extended instrumental breaks without genuine intent – but Toy use them sparingly and wisely. It's a great set and hopefully the next time the band tours, word of mouth and a weekend night will see them playing to a much larger crowd.