Hailing from New Zealand, five piece The Naked and the Famous have risen to fame with their own heavily dynamic style of electro-pop. Fuelled by melodic synth and distortion driven crescendo, the band evoke a unique sense of euphoria in their music.
The Naked and the Famous are supported by Post War Years, a very proper English outfit with a subtly electronic element who have been added to the tour as a last minute replacement for Alex Winston.
The headliners bring all the energy from their debut album Passive Me, Aggressive You to the stage.
The dynamics of the intertwined girl and boy vocal melodies appears to justify the relentless comparisons that the band have received to The XX and this is especially pertinent during the ‘The Ends’, the most melancholic offering of the night.
The production of the show is certainly worthy of note, a huge backdrop of LEDs acting as a graphic visualiser, turning the stage in to a sea of orange while turning the audience, fists in the air, to silhouettes. The gloss of the audio production however is such that there was little in the way of a connection with the band. From start through to finish the performance is immaculate and almost uncomfortably identical to the album.
As the event reaches its finale with the powerful and dramatic ‘Young Blood’ sparking wide spread fist pumping in what is the highlight track of the show, lead vocalist Alisa Xayalith exclaims “Thanks for having us, we’re so glad to be in your town”. With these parting words, a small part of you leaves the venue wondering if even the band themselves know just exactly what town that is.
- And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead - 11 May 2013
- The Lightwings - 16 March 2013
- Frightened Rabbit - 15 February 2012