ThisWayIn

Metronomy make clumsy circus-pop and this really showed on their album Nights Out. But come their pre-Parklife sideshow at Oxford Art Factory and their fans were treated to a set where effects could not be layered over their music as on the album.

For peeps that hadn't seen them live before this was like unwrapping a kinder surprise; beneath all the clowning, instrumental acrobatics and Bee Gee-esque wailing lay classic pop.

With a sweaty beer in hand, staring into the dark audience, I knew the fans that came out were there for none other than Metronomy. These fans were wide-eyed and polite - both are evidence of former nerdism cured by high musical taste and good looks that come late in adolescence.

Anyway, after a refreshingly good set from support band Danimals, a drum-heavy indie outfit from Sydney, Metronomy took the stage with their recently added bassist (Gbenga Adelekan) and drummer (Anna Prior) all wearing those famous flashing breast lamps. It worked a treat to see the flashes sequenced to the music, kind of like electric disco tits.

They opened with their big hitters ‘On The Motorway’, ‘My Heart Rate Rapid’ and ‘The End Of You Too’. About halfway in they attempted a slow jam, which screwed up and was aborted, then went back into classic ass-movers like ‘Back On The Motorway’, during which keyboardist Oscar Cash whipped out a sax and made me blush.

The band also intermittently began and ended songs in statue poses, as they do in some of their music videos. It’s not a common experience, but always a treat, when an international band such as this play such an earnest set. They appeared obviously exhausted from travel and shimmied out their tunes without even a whiff of vanity.