The Zoo - Fri Oct 17

For a tour called The Immaculate Confection, you shouldn’t be surprised at the abundance of sweet pop music and the occasional bad joke from local openers Little Scout. Framed beautifully by Mel Tickle’s delicate voice, the band play a lovely set of stripped back indie pop, often with a melancholic folk quality. Couples holding each other closely litter the darkness; it’s exactly what this type of music is for. Some false starts and shaky sound mixes can’t detract from a good overall performance.

Appearing onstage to Justice’s Genesis seems like an odd choice, but the booming bass show The Holidays are in a party mood. They seem so familiar, yet hard to define, with choppy post-punk lead guitar lines, thundering drums and propulsive bass. The material played off their just-released EP is promising, but as my friend asked, “is it awkward they sound just like the Arctic Monkeys?” It’s scarily accurate when you take a second to consider this. At least they’re not referencing chip shops and Frank Spencer all the time.

A spotlight fades up on Michael Tomlinson playing a sweet little acoustic ditty, as the other members of Yves Klein Blue slowly arrive to kick in at the appropriate time, creating a rollicking cacophony by the songs end. It’s a performance device that explains how the band can draw a crowd after so many gigs in Brisbane: they know how to put on a show. The next hour reinforces this, going through a set that incorporates reggae, glam pop, punk and a bit of country, with a number of songs they excitedly proclaim to be new. Finishing on Polka is an obvious choice, but returning for the encore with all members of the previous bands to perform an ecstatic With A Little Help From My Friends (Tomlinson executing accurate Joe Cocker moves and all) was a treat no one was expecting. But who brought all the glow sticks? Parklife was weeks ago!

MITCH ALEXANDER

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