On the back of another pearler of an album, Dappled Cities have built up a solid base of fans who want to hear new songs and old favourites with equal enthusiasm. Tonight, they delivered a reliably good performance, though were in danger of being overshadowed by their support band.
Jape is not a band I was previously familiar with, but a quick listen to the Irish act’s latest album Ocean Of Frequency confirmed that this was a good match for Dappled Cities. For tonight’s incarnation of Jape, Richie Egan is joined by Glenn Keating, and they emphasis the ‘electro’ side of their sound with a set that sounds a lot like Hot Chip. An initially tentative crowd start to shuffle slightly, and then there’s a mid-set rush to fill the floor in front of the stage, as Egan enthuses “Yes, yes, come to the front!” Suddenly there’s rave stomping, wolf whistling and hands being waved in the air like nobody cares. Dappled Cities’ Tim and Dave are watching from the sidelines – either this is an easy crowd up for a wild Friday night, or a show-stealing support meaning that they have their work cut out for them. They scamper off as the DJ spins some extremely loud Daft Punk to maintain the party vibe.
Considering the progression of the night so far and the strong electronic vibe of new album Lake Air, I had expected to get a bit more of that sound come through on tonight’s Dappled Cities set. Instead, the band bypass some of the best uptempo electro-pop numbers like Real Love and Icecubes, while some of the anticipated new songs are weakened from losing some of their production sheen, notably Work In The Mould and Born At The Right Time. Unexpectedly, after such an amped-up support, it’s the more reflective songs that really shine in this set, notably the wonderful run of The Weekend, Waves and Wooden Ships. We get three songs each from the band’s previous two albums, all wonderful choices, though the one new song that really rises above them all as a live performance is the towering Run With The Wind. The encore is Cream, a ragged, jangly guitar track that stands as the one pre-Granddance number. It captures a simpler, less layered sound from the past and is a fitting close to an entertaining night out of contrasting sets.
BY CHRIS GIRDLER
LOVED: A support well on par with the headliners.
HATED: Not getting there in time to see Lowlakes.
DRANK: Beer.
