Live Review: DMA'S

Paddington Town Hall is the last place we would expect to see a DMA'S gig - a sentiment the Sydney-born band echoed. But it proved a sublime venue for them to launch their new single Dawning to a sold-out hometown crowd.

Lead singer Tommy O'Dell and acoustic guitarist Johnny Took entered the stage first, laying down the melancholic foundations of So We Know, before electric guitarist Matt Mason, and another three members of their live ensemble emerged to lay down a haze of riffs, drums and blazing distortion.

Donning their signature apparel, the Britpop obsessives dished out hands-in-the-air anthems from their 2016 debut Hills End without breaking a sweat. In response, their steaming fans sang, moshed and launched tinnies around the stage floor.

Channelling the mid-'90s 'Madchester' sound, the likes of Feels Like 37, Too Soon and Melbourne permeated the Town Hall with a clarity unbeknownst to a typical DMA'S pub/basement gig. The sea of lights and smoke that illuminated the art deco style hall also amplified the unique and intimate occasion. O'Dell couldn't hide his amusement of their unlikely location, comically noting: "Paddington Town Hall, huh? Very, very posh."

DMA'S breakout hit Delete is still very much the band's centrepiece and a crowd favourite, with bodies swaying and arms interlacing to sing the resonating lyrics in unison. The new single Dawning from their forthcoming second album, which they've been recording in a studio above the Lady Hampshire Hotel with Kim Moyes of The Presets, was also very well-received. But it's the set-closer Laced, with all its garage rock glory, that really stirs the audience into a frenzy.

Before long the resounding "one more song" chants begin, reeling DMA'S back on stage for an encore of Play It Out and Lay Down. O'Dell appeared to have some beloved family members cheering him on from the balcony, as he sweetly blew kisses and waved at them with an unabashed grin on his face. He looked absolutely chuffed, as did the band's loyal following when they poured out of the building at the end of the night.