I think most everyone there can agree: the Aussies threw one heck of a dance party at Granada Theater last night. When I arrived at the show, before the doors even opened, a line of 30 or so was already formed outside, indicating that Dallas was more excited to see the Melbourne’s synthpop band Cut Copy more than I expected.
The night started with the Kiwis, New Zealand’s The Naked and Famous, who kicked off the show before New York-based Holy Ghost! and UK’s Foals (who shared the double-headliner with Cut Copy) hit the stage. The crowd thickened and loosened up to the loud and hard electronic beats, which were easy to get lost in. Props to Holy Ghost! for using every electronic gadget and knick-knack imaginable, from huge, complex synth boards and percussion sets to even thumping on an iPad for a catchy pop sound.
Foals pumped up the crowd with their hits like “Total Live Forever” and “Olympic Airways,” prepping the audience for Cut Copy. At the end of their set, Foals’ lead vocalist and guitarist Yannis Philippakis stood at the edge of the stage, seemingly exhausted from all the thrashing – colossal electric beats and guitar riffs. Suddenly, his face went blank, and he veered off the stage and into the audience, who swept him up and whisked him away through the smoky theater, the band finishing their last song as he sailed through the crowd over hands.
It was such an epic finish to the Foals’s set, I wondered what Cut Copy could do to top it. After an agonizing 30 minute wait, while more crowds packed like sardines into the Granada, the skinny, floppy-haired Aussies finally stepped out from behind a giant, white door prop and took the stage. They opened with oldies like “Visions” and “Nobody Lost, Nobody Found,” grabbing the crowd with their insanely catchy ’80s pop beats and throbbing dance bass, not letting go until their last song, “Out There On The Ice,” was over. The band played some cuts from their new album, the February release Zonoscope, such as “Need You Now” and “Take Me Over.” Like Foals, the band was physically invested in their music. The guitarist crawled and climbed across parts of the stage, even strumming his guitar with a drum stick he found on the ground or metal scaffolding surrounding the setup.
The crowd was equally invested in Cut Copy, as they chanted the lyrics “Lights and music…are on my mind” with frontman Dan Whitford and continued to stomp and clap in rhythm until the band came back out from a break before the encore. Whitford moved his arms and hands passionately toward his listeners, pointing to the audience and motioning to every note he sung like a retro disco dancer. They kept the crowd going strong for about an hour, and left us wanting to soak up more of their electronic beats and pop melodies. Looking at the size of the sold out crowd last night, it’s easy to assume that the next time Foals or Cut Copy visit Dallas, they’ll consider upgrading to a bigger venue and give their eager audience more room to shake it.
Photos by Alanna Quillen.
