Toronto – What a horrible way to start April – I got sick, the Penguins lost two crucial games to CAROLINA and FLORIDA, I forgot to attend my fantasy baseball draft and worst of all, it is still practically winter. It snowed last night, what the hell? Seriously, not funny. As bad a start as April had, it seems to be getting better. Last night was a good beginning as Aussie dance rock troupe The Presets are were in town, promoting their hit album Apocalypso.
Before the Presets were the opener The Golden Filter, who have been receiving a lot of attention lately, and is a favorite of our friends Indie Kid Vs Dance Kid. They are an electronic dance duo (accompanied by a drummer for live performances) from Brooklyn. Everything is from Brooklyn these days. Here is an interview by Eye magazine with them. The venue was about half packed when the band took the stage at 10 pm, which prompted me to figure out why the hell didn’t I stay at home and watch 24 first. The live set included a drummer, the guy on the keyboard/synth/electro knobs and the lead singer Penelope, who looks like a cross between the girl from the Ting Tings and Alison Goldfrapp. I couldn’t actually make out what she looked like because her hair covered most of her face, so I can’t vouch for her hotness. One thing I will say is that she has the sexy nonchalantly dancing and clapping thing down pat. I would say that’s her signature move – swaying side to side, looking into space and clapping. That’s ace.
I was not very impressed with the set, I had heard some buzz about this band earlier so I went to see them. The music all seems very similar, breathy sultry vocals delivered over standard electro beats. In fact, it was so repetitive I myself was doubting the whole genre as a whole. I was all like ‘is this really that bad or have I been in a cave lately and all my appreciation for electro acts have all been a veil pulled over my head by RayBan wearing ravers?’. I decided that this was a case of the music not being very good. While Penelope definitely looked the part of a lead singer, she lacked a certain stage presence that is probably necessary for an act like the Golden Filter to succeed in a live environment. Actually, she reminded me a bit like Lykke Li, if Lykke Li grew up in Williamsburg. I am sure with time, she will be more engaging in a live concert environment.
The Presets came on at around 11pm. Much to my surprise, the Presets are not a live band! I had always envisioned a lead singer (Jules), a drummer, a bassist, a guitar and someone on the synth. The Presets are just Jules on the synth/electro knobby dj thingys and Kim on the drums. This was much to my disappointment. The crowd however, was nuts from the starting track of ‘Talk Like That’ all the way to the last track before the encore, which I believed to be ‘My People’. Toronto fans are often guilty of being the standing around types, however, tonight was not the case as people were dancing left and right.
The concert itself was a bit to slow to start, I was still getting over the disappointment of them not being a full piece set. ‘Yippiyo-ay’ sounded better on album and I was thinking that I was heading to another disappointing show ..then the wall of lights turned on.
Through out the set, the Presets had a relatively normal Mod Club light show, however, behind them was a picket fence of light bulbs, you could say. For much of the first half the set, these lights weren’t on and I was starting to think that maybe they were decorations. Then halfway thru the set, the lights turned on and wow oh wow. What a light show. The next forty five minutes of the set was basically an orgasm for the eyes as colors exploded left and right, lights here, lights there. It was one of the most impressive light shows I have seen. It was about that time when I decided that this show was alright.
The next 45 minutes of the show was a bit of a blur, the dance beats/super light show combo started to overwhelm your senses and soon enough, it was hard to resist dancing. Once you get into that mode, the tunes starting flowing better and it’s hard to not lose it for the songs ‘If I Know You’ and ‘This Boy’s in Love’, both of which sound awesome live.
All in all, a slow start turned into a solid night. People who went to the show got their dance on, and even if I feel that they would have benefited from a more live sound, I think the Presets are worth a look the next time they roll around. Oh yeah, awesome light show.