The last time I was spellbound by Beach House was at The Toff In Town, a more intimate setting than the grand old Forum. That was back in 2008, and their sound since then has become cleaner and bolder, bringing with it a wider fan-base. This doesn’t necessarily mean they’ve become better; my favourite recording of theirs is still 2008’s Devotion, followed closely by 2010’s Teen Dream. But their output remains wonderfully consistent and tonight’s show reveals them to be at the peak of their powers in a live setting.
Victoria Legrand is a commanding centre figure, her keyboard being treated like a lectern while her faultless vocals preached to an audience who were converted from the moment Alex Scally’s first guitar chord reverberated from the stage. Every now and then she twirls her hair around like a heavy metal singer, with particular gusto on The Hours.
But this is no heavy metal. Beach House concoct a steady, hypnotic set of mid-tempo dream pop that gets the audience swaying and rocking. So much so that when Legrand almost apologetically says that they’ll drop it down a notch, it’s actually a welcome changes of pace, and the eloquent On The Sea is one of tonight’s finest moments. The only two pre-2010 songs, Gila and Master Of None, were welcome inclusions, and Bloom’s towering opening triptych of Myth, Wild and Lazuli were readymade for the grandness of The Forum. When Legrand jokingly(?) says that this could be the band’s last show in Melbourne, the response is a few guttural groans and a solemn silence. I hope they took that as our seal of approval.
Wintercoats is like a less caustic, local version of Owen Pallet and he’s a perfect choice to open for Beach House. It’s all clearly unfolding before your eyes, but it’s weird how one person slowly tricks you into thinking there’s several different instrumentalists on stage. Bass, drums, keys – somehow it’s all coming from one looping violin. New song Everyone Seems To Be In On Something segues into Elvis’ Can’t Help Falling In Love With You. Awww. It’s safe to say there was a lot of love in The Forum that night.
BY CHRIS GIRDLER
LOVED: A great venue to match the music.
HATED: Why such a long gap between the support and headliners?
DRANK Pear cider.
