Cut Copy - Camden Roundhouse, London - 27th October 2011 (Live Review)
Thursday, 10 November 2011
Written by Jack Pudwell
It’s always an utter treat to witness a live show in a venue as classy and visually stunning as the Roundhouse in Camden. Although the place itself is now a grade II-listed building, it’s in many ways quite fitting that the now rejuvenated structure and it's extremely modern interior are tonight playing host to a band that effortlessly pay tribute to and reinvigorate certain aspects of musical history whilst constantly looking forward to bring the future even closer.
As the house lights dim and the stage is cloaked in dry ice, the delectable Cut Copy take to the stage to an unrivalled, rapturous applause. Kicking off proceedings with the Fleetwood Mac-esque ‘Take Me Over’, the set from here on in leans most heavily on their latest release ‘Zonoscope’. Whilst the band’s first two full-length releases were unquestionably rooted heavily within house and electro music, the band’s most recent effort is without a doubt their most impassioned and varied album to date, meaning that the performance the Roundhouse is treated to tonight is one as unequivocally enthralling as it is diverse.
For a band that have made their name by creating aggressively catchy dance hooks, it may be easy to suspect that the more psychedelic, laid back tendencies present throughout ‘Zonoscope’ may ruin the momentum of their current live performances, but such a preconception couldn’t be more inaccurate. The band do a brilliant job of taking this new direction and blending it seamlessly with their honed dance sensibilities in a live environment, meaning that modern classics such as ‘Lights & Music’ and ‘Hearts On Fire’ sit perfectly alongside the likes of ‘Blink And You'll Miss A Revolution’ and ‘Pharaohs & Pyramids’, even complimenting one another.
The set contains many highlights and the electric atmosphere remains consistent throughout, but a particularly honorable mention goes to the ‘Zonoscope’ cut ‘Sun God’. Clocking in at a monolithic 15 minutes, the band rinse this pulsating, tribal krautrock epic for everything it’s worth and then some. Jamming the song out with a huge bout of extra percussion and a ridiculously noisy guitar solo, the band jam it out almost to the brink of extinction, only to bring it back down with the most immense payoff of the night.
Cut Copy have shown once again their ability to display a veritable masterclass in taking electronic music and fusing it fluidly with aspects of rock, pop and psychedelia to create something truly unique. With the band having come from the confines of the Scala to the magnificently grandiose settings of the Roundhouse within just three years, it’s very hard to doubt that this delightfully ambitious group of musicians will only continue to grow in both stature and musical ability as time quickly marches on.
Setlist:
Take Me Over
Feel The Love
Hanging Onto Every Heartbeat
So Haunted
Corner Of The Sky
Lights & Music
Blink And You’ll Miss A Revolution
Saturdays
Hearts On Fire
Sun God --------
Where I’m Going
Need You Now
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Out There On The Ice
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