Live Review: MTNS, Oscar Key Sung

Oscar Key Sung is the solo project of Oscar Slorach-Thorn, previously known for his work in Oscar + Martin. The new material works within a similar indie-R&B zone, but sets aside the playfulness for a more serious approach.

The minimalism of Holograms makes more sense in a live context: the stripped-back beat leaves the vocals alone and aching with longing. Slorach-Thorn is in perfect voice tonight, although his pleas for the crowd to get involved fall on deaf ears early on, despite some impressive dance moves of his own.

All I Could Do starts with a long, reworked beginning, which makes it seem an ambient remix is on offer, but as the beats of the recorded version kick in and the song builds back into its original form, people finally take to the floor to dance and there’s a relieved grin on Slorach-Thorn’s face.

The last few songs of the set really show what marks Oscar Key Sung apart from the bulk of Australian indie-R&B: heavy, pulsing heavy bass and skittering, almost uncomfortable snares, showing a preparedness to push well beyond the realms of safe pop. These tracks feel informed by Burial or Aphex Twin as much as by D’Angelo. Maybe that experimentation explains why he hasn’t cracked mainstream acclaim yet, but it definitely feels like it’s coming.

While GoMA provides a pretty decent mix for electronic acts these days, the more traditional band setup of MTNS seems to struggle. Notes fade into air, vocals almost peak out and over the first few tracks, the more interesting subtleties of their recorded work are lost in the large performance space.

A few tracks in and things start to come together on Crave, a solid slice of indie-rock that shows what the band are capable of – swelling, emotive, stadium-style anthems that recall the better parts of Doves. Unfortunately, technical problems continue to plague the set, and even lead to a song being skipped after a couple of false starts. Frontman Tom Eggert takes it in good humour, keeping the crowd on side with a helpless shrug, and the following track proves the highlight of the set.

To the end though, the sound never quite works. The band are giving their all, but the mix refuses to click, and so what should have been a massive rock finish merely gives the appearance of one: too quiet, too much lost in the large room to have the impact the song clearly deserves. Perhaps not the showcase MTNS would have hoped for, but there’s definitely enough promise to warrant catching the band under better conditions.