Live Review: alt-J

British born triad alt​-J wowed Adelaide's packed Entertainment Centre Tuesday night, with perhaps only one complaint: why did it have to be on a Tuesday night?

Thousands watched on as an ambitious collection of vertical lights were constructed in preparation for alt-J's headlining set.

The pre-hype wasn't misplaced given that alt-J's hyper-mystic-reality music videos are now almost synonymous with their music. More like short films, the videos are considered by many as among the most uninhibited and dark explorations of human nature in the [video] scene. Expectations were high. And as hoped, the lights were indeed a palpable, breathing vibration of the evening's soundtrack.

3WW started the set and introduced the impressive wattage of both the lights and sound to come throughout the night, as oversized bead-curtain lights pulsated brightly in reaction to the music. Thankfully with no (known) immediate seizures induced, the stadium-bright lights disseminated into glittering waterfalls as the unmistakable beginning of Something Good winced in. The older track marked a welcome, set-long tribute to alt-J's best known and loved songs.

At Tessellate the crowd realised they would know every song regardless of being a fair-weather fan or knowing every album like the back of their (left) hand. The quietly anthemic Matilda was performed as a solo and demonstrated alt-J's affinity for switching gears in tempo and pitch. The tapestries of hung light-strings convulsed and pulsed in time and beat, changing colour to mimic the robotic and industrial tones of In Cold Blood; they struck a shimmering gold for Matilda and even as an intense red and amber, reminiscent of a blazing wild forest fire, during Hunger Of The Pine.

It was nice to see Taro get the respect it deserves. It stood out as being a favourite to dance to, and was illuminated by indigo blue and bright gold. An energetic string of favourites was punctuated by a somewhat indulgent Tudor-folk intermission, with the trio holding back slightly before again challenging Adelaide's power grid with the industrial and sub-heavy Fitzpleasure. A satisfying encore concluded with Left Hand Free and Breezeblocks.

Overall, Adelaide was gifted with an outstanding performance. Every standout single stood up to expectations and, was all the more intense for the 100,000-watt electric curtains.