For those of us lucky enough to see Decoder Ring at Splendour a few weeks back, it’s a most attractive prospect indeed to catch them doing a longer set in a more intimate venue. Like many instrumental groups, they are more musicians than performers, so their audio-visual blend of film projections with oddly soulful electronic-anchored rock creates a set that is beautiful, inventive and, yes, fun! In addition, support acts Seekae and Bridezilla provide varied musical elements, conspiring to create a lovely night out. To help things along even further, Spring has well and truly arrived early!
Arriving at The Zoo, electronic three-piece Seekae are just underway. Hunched over their oddly low-perched synths, my friend suggests tailoring their instruments into keytars to tap into their inner Jan Hammer. Nonetheless, their laptops and gadgets (even including melodica) produce some crystalline examples of post-Aphex Twin electronica, while the occasional incorporation of live drums recalls the piledriving beats of Keith Leblanc in Tackhead. A quite apt opening act.
A less obvious choice for support is the indie classical folkists Bridezilla, though they still manage to intrigue the expanding population emerging up The Zoo’s stairs. Charismatic frontwoman Holiday Sidewinder is the focal point for the audience, alternating between guitar and shimmying sexily with a tambourine, but it’s her voice that proves particularly fascinating, veering from high and ethereal to grainy and gravelly. Saxophonist Millie Hall and violinist Daisy Tully provide Middle Eastern and even medieval elements to the brooding sound. The main criticism I have is that at times their sound is left a bit gaping – some bass guitar would anchor their music nicely. But as Holiday steps off stage to dance among the audience, the set ultimately feels satisfying and entertaining.
For a band specialising in the frequently cerebral area of instrumental rocktronica, Decoder Ring’s new album They Blind The Stars, And The Wild Team (specifically disc one) is full of simple, visceral and melodic heights. This is reflected by the crowd’s response tonight – it’s a more beery, jovial audience than one might expect. But despite their experimental chops, Decoder Ring’s compositions have the dramatic peaks and big endings that come with the simple joy of rock music. Simon Killalea’s visuals enhance the experience, projecting natural history footage and images of deep space, adding to the music’s potency. Highlights include the almost Neu!-like propulsion of Beat The Twilight, the majestic Charlotte Rampling and the epic Let A Thousand Flowers Bloom, while 100 Suns is a thrilling build-up from sparse guitar melody to MBV-worthy walls of sound. Lenka-sung material from the Somersault and Fractions albums may not be present, though the mountainous blend of synths and guitars more than make up for the absence of old friends.
Matt Thrower
rave
Forgoing any material from their Lenka period and simply drawing their set mostly from their recent record They Blind the Stars, and the Wild Team Decoder Ring don’t disappoint anyone here tonight. “Charlotte Rampling” and “Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom” especially sounding fleshed out with a much bigger sound than can be found on what is already an incredible record. Throughout the set what can only be described as fittingly stunning visuals are projected onto the band and the screen behind. Footage of flowers opening, stars exploding, cells splitting, it’s the truly epic proportions that can only compliment the aural sensory experience of Decoder Ring live. “Beat The Twilight” would for anyone else’s set be the highlight but that accolade must go to “100 Suns”, here played out with notes the length of the stillness between a heartbeat before descending into post rock peaks of swirling guitar and electronica. It’s a gorgeous and truly mind blowing set, but as the house lights go up we’re left wondering if this will be the last time we will see Decoder Ring in a venue of this size.
After quite the introduction, Decoder Ring had finally arrived. It looked bleak for a while there but the punters arrived just in time for the experimental electronic force that the five Sydney residents have made their own. Beat The Twilight, Fractions, Same Old Paradise and Astronaut Farewell Blues are just some of the powerful soundscapes to envelope The Zoo this evening while imagery of animals, skeletons, cells and natures fury flashed upon the backdrop.
The amount of spoken words tonight could be counted on a single hand. Most of these being ”Thanks” from bassist, Matthew Steffen while Xavier Fijac danced in-between injecting keys and samples into the mix. The standout of the evening was, without a doubt, drummer Jasper Fenton. Despite being worth his weight in gold, whatever he is being paid it should be doubled. Not one dropped beat or a nanosecond out of time was enough to make two patrons beside me spend most of the hour set on the invisible drum kit.
In the end only one thing can be certain, when the four horsemen of the Apocalypse ride in at least one of them is going to have Decoder Ring playing on their mp3 player.
Touring in support of their fourth album, Sydney locals Decoder Ring led the audience through the Odyssey of their double CD release 'They Blind the Stars, And The Wild Team'. They seemingly transported the audience with dreamy sound scapes that slowly built to inspire a dancing frenzy that would then wind down in a post-rock style breakdown. True to the successful soundtrack in their past (the 2004 film Somersault and Decoder Ring seem to be as one) the band brought a multi-sensory experience complete with a projectionist running film over the sonic exploration happening on stage.
